In Re Shirley B.

This tragic case once again requires us to balance a parent’s rights to raise her children against the State’s interest in protecting those children from neglect or abuse. Two factors make this case uncommonly hard—(1) the lack of progress towards parent-child reunification despite significant efforts by the Department of Social Services combined with cooperation from the parent, and (2) the apparent impact of our governmental financial downturn on the availability of services for those who are developmentally disabled.

Petitioner, Ms. B., and Mr. T. 1 are the biological parents of Shirley B.,…