Child protective proceedings; Jurisdiction; MCL 712A.2(b)(1) & (2); Domestic violence; Substantial risk of harm; Unfit home or environment; In re Sluiter; Credibility

The court held that the trial court did not err by exercising jurisdiction over respondent-father’s child under MCL 712A.2(b)(1) and (b)(2). The DHHS petitioned after allegations that respondent had committed domestic violence against the child’s mother, and the trial court found the mother’s allegations credible while finding respondent’s testimony lacked credibility. On appeal, the court rejected respondent’s argument that jurisdiction was improper because his home with his fiancée and other children was stable and free from domestic violence. The court reasoned that evidence showed respondent committed multiple criminal acts inside the mother’s home, including stealing her phone, ransacking her bedroom, and repeatedly assaulting her, with the most recent assault occurring in 1/25. The court noted that in Sluiter, it held that domestic violence in a home “reflects cruelty, criminality, and depravity on the part of [the abuser],” and that “a home where domestic violence repeatedly occurs is not a fit environment in which to raise a child.” The court also rejected any suggestion that jurisdiction required proof the child witnessed every incident because “there is no provision in the statute that requires such behavior be conducted in front of the child.” Although there was evidence respondent’s home was suitable for his other children, the court held the same evidence supported a finding that he failed to maintain a stable environment for this child by engaging in criminality and domestic assaults toward the child’s mother in the child’s home environment. Affirmed.