Parental rights to a child may be terminated by the children's court according to the procedures in this section.

Proceedings to terminate parental rights shall be instituted by a petition filed by the presenting officer on behalf of the tribe or by the parents or guardian of the child. The petition shall state:

The name, birth date, and residence of the minor;

The names and residences of the minor's parents, guardian or custodian;

If the child is in detention or shelter care, the place of detention or shelter care and the time he was taken into custody; and

The reasons for the petition.

Upon receipt of the petition, the children's court shall set a date for the termination hearing which shall not be more than 15 days after the children's court receives the petition from the presenting officer. The hearing may be continued:

On motion of the minor's parents, guardian or custodian; or

Upon motion of the presenting officer by reason of the unavailability of material evidence or witnesses and the children's court finds the presenting officer has exercised due diligence to obtain the material evidence or witnesses and reasonable grounds exist to believe that the material evidence or witnesses will become available.

Summons:

At least five working days prior to the termination hearing, the children's court shall issue summons to the minor, the minor's parents, guardian or custodian, and any other person the court or the minor's parents, guardian or custodian believes necessary for the proper adjudication of the hearing.

The summons shall contain the name of the court, the title of the proceedings, and the date, time and place of the hearing.

A copy of the petition shall be attached to the summons.

The summons shall be delivered personally by a law enforcement officer or appointee of the children's court. If the summons cannot be delivered personally, the court may deliver it by certified mail.

The children's court shall conduct the termination hearing for the sole purpose of determining whether parental rights shall be terminated. The hearing shall be private and closed.

All the rights listed in § 11.906 shall be afforded the parties in the termination hearing except the right to a free court-appointed counsel. The minor's parents may not be compelled to be witnesses against, nor otherwise incriminate themselves.

The children's court shall hear testimony concerning the circumstances that gave rise to the petition, and the need for termination of parental rights.

The children's court may terminate parental rights if, following efforts to prevent or eliminate the need to remove the minor, it finds such efforts to have been unsuccessful, and it finds beyond a reasonable doubt that:

The child has been abandoned;

The minor has suffered physical injuries, willfully and repeatedly inflicted by his or her parent(s) which cause or create a substantial risk of death, disfigurement, or impairment of bodily functions;

The parent(s) has subjected the minor to willful and repeated acts of sexual abuse;

The minor has suffered serious emotional or mental harm due to the act of the parent(s); or

The voluntary written consent of both parents has been acknowledged before the court.

Dispositional alternatives:

If parental rights to a child are terminated, the children's court shall place the minor in a foster care or shelter care facility which has been approved by the tribe, and follow the adoption procedures of the tribe, or, in their absence, the adoption procedures of the state within which it is located.

If parental rights to a child are not terminated, the children's court shall make a disposition according to § 11.1112 of this part.

The termination order constitutes a final order for purposes of appeal.

No adjudication of termination of parental rights shall affect the minor's enrollment status as a member of any tribe or the minor's degree of blood quantum of any tribe.