Claymore v. Serr

WUEST, Chief Justice.

This is an appeal from a decision of the trial court retaining jurisdiction in termination and adoption proceedings involving an Indian child and terminating the parental rights of the father. We affirm in part, reverse in part, and remand.

Plaintiff, Shayne Claymore (Claymore), an enrolled member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, and defendant, Janelle Johnson Serr (Serr), a non-Indian, attended high school together in Eagle Butte, South Dakota and began dating in their early teens. Serr became pregnant and gave birth to her daughter, Danette, in 1977. Claymore was the…