In re A.B.

── In re A.B. ── Court: Appellate Court of Illinois Date: May 15, 2026 Category: General 2026 IL App (1st) 251567 FIFTH DIVISION May 15, 2026 IN THE APPELLATE COURT OF ILLINOIS FIRST JUDICIAL DISTRICT No. 1-25-1567 In re A.B., a Minor, ) ) Appeal from the (The People of the State of Illinois, ) Circuit Court of ) Cook County. Petitioner-Appellee, ) ) No. 19 JA 00851 v. ) ) Honorable G.J. ) Tracie Porter, ) Judge Presiding. Respondent-Appellant). ) JUSTICE MIKVA delivered the judgment of the court, with opinion. Justices McBride concurred in the judgment and opinion. Justice Ellis dissented, with opinion. OPINION ¶1 This case raises a difficult question for a child protection case: How should the court and parties proceed where the identity of the father is not discovered until after the child has been in foster care for many years and the goal for the child has already been established as the termination of parental rights? While we agree with the point raised in the well-argued brief filed by the father’s attorneys—that the court cannot simply ignore the emergence of a previously undiscovered parent—we also agree with the State that, in this case, there was at least one clear basis on which to terminate the father’s rights that was unaffected by his late identification. We therefore affirm the termination decision of the circuit court. No. 1-25-1567 ¶2 I. BACKGROUND ¶3 On May 10, 2019, the mother in this case, T.B., who is not a party to this appeal, gave birth to A.B. On August 6, 2019, the State filed a petition for adjudication of wardship. The supporting facts were that T.B. had left her foster care placement, taking her newborn with her, and had since then participated in high-risk behavior while on the run, including prostitution. ¶4 A. Adjudication, Paternity Search, and Permanency Goals ¶5 At the adjudication hearing on June 21, 2022, the court found A.B. to be neglected due to an injurious environment, and, at the dispositional hearing on February 17, 2023, T.B. was found unable to care for her. A.B. was placed in the custody of the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) guardianship administrator, with the goal of returning her home. ¶6 Throughout the case, T.B. struggled to meet the DCFS service plans and complete the recommended courses and treatments. In April 2023, during a supervised visit with her daughter, T.B. and her paramour took A.B. from the visitation center without permission. Chicago police were notified and issued an Amber Alert. The court issued a child-protection warrant a few days later, and the authorities ultimately found A.B. and returned her to her foster mother. ¶7 In January 2024, the goal for A.B. was changed to substitute care pending termination of parental rights. At that point, no one had been determined to be A. B.’s father, and T.B. was clearly not making progress towards regaining custody of A.B.. ¶8 The first putative father identified was a man named L.B. A few months later, another