State of Idaho v. John Doe

── State of Idaho v. John Doe ── Court: Idaho Court of Appeals Date: May 04, 2026 Category: General IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF THE STATE OF IDAHO Docket No. 53143 In the Interest of: John Doe I and John ) Doe II, Children Under Eighteen (18) ) Years of Age. ) STATE OF IDAHO, DEPARTMENT OF ) Filed: May 4, 2026 HEALTH & WELFARE, ) ) Melanie Gagnepain, Clerk Petitioner-Respondent, ) ) THIS IS AN UNPUBLISHED v. ) OPINION AND SHALL NOT ) BE CITED AS AUTHORITY JOHN DOE (2025-34), ) ) Respondent-Appellant. ) ) Appeal from the Magistrate Division of the District Court of the Sixth Judicial District, State of Idaho, Bannock County. Hon. Anson L. Call II, Magistrate. Judgment terminating parental rights, affirmed. Robert O. Eldredge, Pocatello, for appellant. Hon. Raúl R. Labrador, Attorney General; Jason R. Chandler, Deputy Attorney General, Pocatello, for respondent. ________________________________________________ TRIBE, Chief Judge John Doe (2025-34) appeals from the judgment terminating his parental rights. We affirm. I. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND Doe is the father of two children (Children) born in 2022 and 2023.1 This case arose after Doe, Children’s mother, and Children moved multiple times and ultimately became homeless. In part, the homelessness resulted from domestic violence between Doe and Children’s mother. 1 Doe has a history of Idaho Department of Health and Welfare involvement, including twenty-two intakes, sixteen assessments, and two open case management cases that resulted in the removal and termination of his parental rights to three of his four other children in 2008. 1  In December 2023 and January 2024, the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare (Department) received referrals raising concerns that Children were homeless and that Doe and Children’s mother were constantly fighting. The Department recommended temporary shelter care, and the State filed a motion to remove Children. The magistrate court placed Children in the Department’s legal custody. The magistrate court ordered Doe to complete a case plan to reunify with Children. While in foster care, Children received medical care and a stable home environment. The magistrate court conducted several review and status hearings while Children were in the Department’s custody. The Department filed a petition to terminate Doe’s parental rights, and the magistrate court held a termination trial. After the trial, the magistrate court entered its findings of fact and conclusions of law and the judgment terminating Doe’s parental rights, finding that Doe neglected Children and that termination of Doe’s parental rights is in the best interests of Children. Doe appeals.2 II. STANDARD OF REVIEW A parent has a fundamental liberty interest in maintaining a relationship with his or her child. Troxel v. Granville, 530 U.S. 57, 65 (2000); Doe v. State, 137 Idaho 758, 760, 53 P.3d 341, 343 (2002). This interest is protected by the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. State v. Doe, 144 Idaho 839, 842, 172 P.3d 1114, 1117 (2007). Implicit in the Termination of Parent and Child Relationship Act is the philosophy that, wherever possible, family life should be strengthened and preserved. Idaho Code § 1