In re T.T.

── In re T.T. ── Court: Appellate Court of Illinois Date: April 17, 2026 Category: General 2026 IL App (1st) 25-1928-U No. 1-25-1928 Order filed April 17, 2026 Fifth Division NOTICE: This order was filed under Supreme Court Rule 23 and is not precedent except in the limited circumstances allowed under Rule 23(e)(1). ______________________________________________________________________________ IN THE APPELLATE COURT OF ILLINOIS FIRST DISTRICT ______________________________________________________________________________ In re T.T., a Minor, ) Appeal from the ) Circuit Court of (The People of the State of Illinois, ) Cook County. ) Petitioner-Appellee, ) No. 23 JA 00806 ) v. ) Honorable ) Diane M. Pezanoski, L.K., ) Judge, Presiding. ) Respondent-Appellant.) ) JUSTICE ODEN JOHNSON delivered the judgment of the court. Presiding Justice Mitchell and Justice Mikva concurred in the judgment. ORDER ¶1 Held: We affirm where the court’s finding of a lack of reasonable progress towards reunification during either of two separate nine-month periods was not against the manifest weight of the evidence. ¶2 Respondent mother L.K. appeals from the circuit court’s determination that termination of her parental rights was minor child’s best interests. On appeal, respondent contends that the trial No. 1-25-1928 evidence was insufficient to prove by clear and convincing evidence that she had neglected the minor on the statutory grounds alleged in the termination petition when she was drug-free and visiting the minor at the time of the unfitness hearing. For the reasons that follow we affirm. ¶3 I. BACKGROUND ¶4 A. Adjudication Proceedings ¶5 The majority of the underlying facts are not in dispute. The record reveals that the minor, T.T., was born on November 1, 2023, with drugs in her system. The State filed a petition for adjudication of wardship on November 15, 2023, alleging that respondent had neglected and/or abused the newborn minor. In support of that allegation, the State alleged that respondent had a long history of drug abuse and used illicit drugs while pregnant. At birth, the minor tested positive for cocaine, fentanyl, and opiates. Respondent was previously involved in incidents of alleged abuse and showed signs of physical injury; respondent was homeless at that time; and T.T.’s paternity was not established. The petition alleged that those conditions created an injurious environment to the minor and put her at risk of serious physical injury. ¶6 After a hearing on March 27, 2024, the circuit court entered an order which adjudicated the minor an abused or neglected child pursuant to sections 2-3(1)(b), (c) and 2-3(2)(ii) of the Juvenile Court Act of 1987 (Act) (705 ILCS 405/2-3(1)(b), (c); 2-3(2)(ii) (West 2022)), The adjudication was based on the fact that she was a minor under 18 years of age whose environment was injurious to her welfare, she was exposed to drugs as an infant, and there