Petitioner seeks review of partial-compliance finding and supervised visits in child-welfare case

Dana Nelson, attorney for the petitioner mother, asked the commissioner on Aug. 26, 2026 to accept a motion for discretionary review of a juvenile court's orders, challenging a finding that the mother was only partially compliant with her case plan and the court's decision to require supervised visitation.

Nelson told the commissioner, "It's my understanding that the parents have moved from Vancouver to Cowlitz County so that they could be closer to the children." She said that move could moot part of the petition's argument about relocating visit sites and emphasized that the remaining legal issues were whether the court properly found partial compliance and whether the supervision requirement for visits was justified.

The Department of Children, Youth, and Families, represented by Madeline Ebel, urged the commissioner to deny review. Ebel said the juvenile court acted within its broad discretion when it found partial compliance and ordered supervised visits, citing gaps in the record about the mother's counseling and the mother's failure to follow recommendations from a neuropsychological evaluation.

The commissioner asked several clarifying questions about the record and the parties' efforts to obtain treatment records before adjourning the matter for the commissioner's 08/26/2026 docket. The court requested that if either party learns additional information about the parents' living situation or whether transportation remains a live issue, they promptly notify the court and opposing counsel.