L. A. Cnty. Dep't of Children & Family Servs. v. A.G. (In re E.T.)
| Docket Number | B319682 |
| Decision Date | 24 May 2023 |
| Parties | In re E.T. et al., Persons Coming Under the Juvenile Court Law. v. A.G., Defendant and Appellant. LOS ANGELES COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN AND FAMILY SERVICES, Plaintiff and Respondent, |
| Court | California Court of Appeals Court of Appeals |
NOT TO BE PUBLISHED
APPEAL from an order of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County. No. 21CCJP03836A-D Tara L. Newman, Judge. Affirmed in part reversed in part, and remanded with directions.
Patricia K. Saucier, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant.
Dawyn R. Harrison, County Counsel, Kim Nemoy, Assistant County Counsel, and Kelly G. Emling, Deputy County Counsel, for Plaintiff and Respondent.
A.G (Mother) appeals from the juvenile court's order terminating dependency jurisdiction over her four children granting sole custody to their father, D.T. (Father), and ordering monitored visitation for Mother with the children's consent. Mother contends the juvenile court abused its discretion in making her visitation subject to the children's consent, and in terminating jurisdiction when Father was not cooperating with the visitation orders. We conclude the juvenile court improperly delegated judicial authority over visitation to the children and Father. We accordingly reverse the portion of the juvenile court's order regarding Mother's visitation with the children, and remand for the court to conduct a new hearing on the issue of visitation. In all other respects, we affirm.
Mother and Father are the parents of four minor children: 11-year-old Ed.T., nine-year-old El.T., five-year-old S.T., and three-year-old A.T. In June 2021, the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) received a referral alleging physical abuse, emotional abuse, and neglect of the children by Mother. At that time, the parents were no longer living together, and the children primarily resided with Mother under an informal custody arrangement. According to the referral, while Ed.T. and El.T. were staying with Father, they disclosed that Mother physically abused them, called them derogatory names and told them to kill themselves, and did not provide for their basic needs. Although Mother was demanding that Ed.T. and El.T. be returned to her, Father was refusing to do so because the children were afraid to be in her care.
In July 2021, a social worker met with Ed.T. and El.T. at Father's home. Ed.T. reported that Mother would hit him and his siblings with an open hand all over their bodies. She also choked the children. When Ed.T. was five or six years old, Mother struck his head with a hot sauce bottle, bit him on the arm, and tried to scratch him with a knife. When the child was six or seven years old, she hit him with a broom stick and tied him up as a form of discipline. On one occasion, Mother hit El.T.'s head so hard that it caused her to bleed. Ed.T. further disclosed that Mother called him names such as "dumb fuck," "stupid," and "crazy," and told him "to jump out the window" and "to kill himself." In addition, she solely fed the children junk food or old food, and allowed Ed.T. to shower only once a week. Mother expected Ed.T. to clean and take care of his siblings because she would sleep most days.
In her interview, El.T. disclosed that Mother would slap, hit, punch, bite, and tie up the children. When El.T. was six or seven years old, Mother hit her with a broom stick on multiple occasions, leaving bruises. Mother also bit El.T., slapped her in the face with an open hand, and punched her in the face and stomach with a closed fist. When the child was six years old, Mother got upset and slammed El.T.'s head against the refrigerator, causing significant bleeding. Mother repeatedly tied up El.T. and Ed.T. with tape, and she choked and hit their younger siblings when they did not listen. El.T. further reported that Mother called the children names such as "bitch," and told El.T. to "jump out of the window" and "to hit herself with a car." Mother did not provide the children with healthy food, and did not allow El.T. to bathe on a regular basis. She also relied on El.T. and Ed.T. to clean and care for their siblings while she slept throughout the day. Both El.T. and Ed.T. related that they felt safe with Father, but not with Mother, and that they wanted to remain in Father's home.
The social worker also met with Father and his live-in girlfriend, L.A. Father typically would have custody of all four children on the weekends. More recently, however, Mother had agreed to allow both Ed.T. and El.T. to reside at Father's home for a period of time. While Ed.T. and El.T. were staying with Father and L.A., they disclosed that Mother was physically abusing them. They further disclosed that Mother called them vulgar names and told them to kill themselves, which caused Ed.T. to have suicidal thoughts. Both Father and L.A. also reported that Mother was neglecting the children. She refused to take them for necessary medical and dental care, or to provide Father with the proper paperwork so that he could do so. She had not enrolled El.T. in school, and she expected Ed.T. to care for his siblings during the day while she slept. Although Father had not witnessed any abuse firsthand, he did once find Ed.T. and El.T. tied together inside Mother's home. Mother was no longer allowing Father to have contact with S.T. and A.T., and he was concerned about their safety in her care. Father stated that he intended to seek full custody of all four children.
After several attempts, the social worker was able to interview Mother. Mother reported that S.T. and A.T. were currently residing with her. Ed.T. and El.T. had been out of her care for a few weeks because Father and his girlfriend had offered to take the children to dinner one day and then refused to return them. Mother denied she physically abused the children, or ever used a broom or any other object to discipline them. On one occasion, she disciplined Ed.T. by hitting him on the palm of his hand. On another occasion, she grabbed El.T.'s hand and acted like she was going to hit it, but never did. She once tied up Ed.T. and El.T. in a playful manner, but Father walked in and assumed she was punishing the children so he pushed her and called her names. Mother denied she called the children inappropriate names or told them to kill themselves. She further denied she neglected the children, or forced Ed.T. or El.T. to take care of their younger siblings. Mother disclosed that she had a history of mental health issues, and that she and Father had a history of domestic violence. She believed Father was manipulating the children into making up the allegations against her. While S.T. and A.T. were too young to make a statement, the social worker did not observe any signs of abuse or neglect in either of them.
A forensic medical examination was later conducted for each of the four children. El.T. had linear scalp lacerations, a scar on her chin, and a scar on her eyebrow, all of which she attributed to physical abuse by Mother. El.T. also had linear markings on both sides of her neck, which she reported were the result of self-inflicted wounds after Mother told her to kill herself. Ed.T. had a cluster of linear markings on his thigh, linear markings on his forearm, and scars on his scalp and head, which he claimed were inflicted by Mother. Ed.T. also disclosed that he had suicidal thoughts in the past because Mother had told him to kill himself. The doctor who performed the exams noted that there were no external findings of acute physical abuse for the two youngest children, S.T. and A.T., but that the absence of such findings did not exclude prior abuse. The doctor further stated, that based on exams of El.T. and Ed.T. and the information that they provided, there were significant concerns about the safety of all four children if left in Mother's care.
In August 2021, the social worker conducted follow-up interviews with Ed.T. and El.T. Both children stated that they were doing well in Father's home, and that they did not wish to see or talk to Mother. On August 13, 2021, DCFS removed S.T. and A.T. from Mother's home and placed them with Father. When Mother asked about visitation with the children, the social worker responded that DCFS would try to arrange a visit, but would respect the children's wishes if they did not want to see her.
On August 17, 2021, DCFS filed a dependency petition on behalf of the children under Welfare and Institutions Code[1]section 300. The petition alleged that all four children were at substantial risk of serious physical harm under section 300, subdivisions (a), (b), and (j), based on Mother's physical abuse of each of them. It further alleged that Ed.T. and El.T. were at substantial risk of serious emotional damage under section 300, subdivision (c), based on Mother's emotional abuse of them. At a detention hearing held on August 20, 2021, the juvenile court detained the children from Mother and released them to Father under DCFS's supervision. Mother was granted weekly monitored visitation with the children in a therapeutic setting.
DCFS conducted additional interviews with the family for its jurisdictional and dispositional report. In their respective interviews with the social worker, Ed.T. and El.T. confirmed their prior statements regarding severe physical and emotional abuse by Mother. According to both children, Mother hit them with an open hand, a closed fist, and a broom stick on a regular basis. She also bit the children and tied them up with tape as a form of discipline. On one occasion, she hit Ed.T.'s head...
To continue reading
Request your trial