Sarah K. v. Superior Court of Sonoma Cnty.
| Decision Date | 17 January 2023 |
| Docket Number | A165607 |
| Citation | 87 Cal.App.5th 549,303 Cal.Rptr.3d 600 |
| Parties | SARAH K., Petitioner, v. The SUPERIOR COURT OF SONOMA COUNTY, Respondent; Sonoma County Human Services Department. et al., Real Parties in Interest. |
| Court | California Court of Appeals Court of Appeals |
Windandsea Law Offices, Tracy M. De Soto, for Petitioner.
Sonoma County Counsel's Office; Gordon-Creed, Kelley, Holl, Angel and Sugarman, Jeremy Sugarman, and Anne H. Nguyen, for Real Party in Interest.
Miller, J. Sarah K. (Mother) petitions this court for extraordinary relief from a dependency court order terminating reunification services and setting a hearing under Welfare and Institutions Code section 366.26 to select a permanent plan for her three-year-old daughter A.G.1 Mother contends that in view of the fact that she successfully completed her case plan, the trial court erred in finding that returning A.G. to her care would "create a substantial risk of detriment" to A.G.’s "safety, protection, or physical or emotional well-being." (§ 366.22, subd. (a)(1).) Mother argues that the dependency court improperly determined that her September 2021 relapse into substance abuse created a substantial risk of detriment to A.G. She also argues that in finding detriment the dependency court improperly compared A.G.’s current foster home to Mother's home and "evaluated [A.G.’s] best interest, instead of evaluating detriment of return."
We find no error, and therefore we deny Mother's petition.
FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND
In September 2019, the Sonoma County Human Services Department (the Department) filed a petition on behalf of then-11-month-old A.G., alleging risk of serious physical harm ( § 300, subd. (a) ) and failure to protect ( § 300, subd. (b)(1) ). The petition alleged that A.G.’s alleged father, F.G., who had recently been released from prison, violently attacked Mother twice in the baby's presence, once on September 1, and then on September 3. Both incidents involved attempts to choke mother, who struggled to breathe, feared she would lose consciousness, and suffered visible bruising and other injuries. The second incident resulted in F.G.’s arrest on felony charges. At a hearing on September 12, A.G. was detained from F.G. and remained in Mother's home. The court issued a temporary restraining order against F.G.
In a jurisdiction/disposition report filed in October 2019, the Department recommended that A.G. and her 14-year-old half-sister S.K. be declared dependents and remain in Mother's custody with Mother to receive family maintenance services.2
The Department reported that Mother and F.G. had a history of domestic violence in their relationship. According to a police report from December 2017, F.G., who was on felony probation for domestic violence at the time, head-butted Mother " ‘on her nose, causing a visible injury and causing it to bleed heavily.’ " Then he shoved mother on the bed and pinched her on her upper chest and right bicep, resulting in visible injuries. At the time, Mother told police that F.G. had assaulted her multiple times previously, pulling her hair, strangling her, and slapping her. Even though F.G. had been violent toward Mother in the past, Mother allowed F.G. to live in the home with A.G., and continued to allow him to live in the home after the September 1 incident, which Mother delayed reporting to law enforcement.
The report summarized Mother's extensive prior child welfare history that dated back to 2015 and involved allegations of general neglect, physical abuse and emotional abuse inflicted by Mother on S.K. (her oldest daughter) and her middle daughter, A.M. Mother lost custody of A.M., in connection with a previous dependency case that involved "intensive voluntary family maintenance" services and "terminated unsuccessfully." A.M. currently resides with her father.
The report also summarized Mother's self-reported history of substance abuse. Mother reported that she tried smoking marijuana when she was nine or 10 years old, tried alcohol at 14, and experimented with ecstasy, cocaine and mushrooms as a teenager. She smoked methamphetamine for the first time in 2015 and continued her addiction for about three years, even though she had been ordered by the court to participate in substance abuse treatment in 2016. Mother said she had been clean from methamphetamine from March 2018 when she learned she was pregnant with A.G., and credited her sobriety to her pregnancy and being incarcerated, which allowed her to take seriously her participation in a court-ordered program in 2018. The Department reported that it had referred Mother for substance testing on September 5, September 19, and October 10, 2019.
In November 2019, the dependency court adopted the Department's recommended jurisdictional and dispositional findings and orders, found true amended allegations that A.G. was at risk of serious physical harm as a result of F.G.’s violence towards Mother ( § 300, subd. (a) ) and that Mother had failed to adequately protect A.G. by allowing F.G. to reside in the home with A.G. despite F.G.’s history of domestic violence, by allowing him to continue to reside in the home after the September 1 incident, and by not promptly reporting the September 1 incident to law enforcement. The court declared A.G. a dependent, continued her placement with Mother, and ordered family maintenance services to Mother. Eventually, a five-year restraining order was granted protecting Mother, A.G., and S.K. from F.G.
Because of Mother's history of substance abuse and treatment, one of her court-ordered case plan objectives was to "provide a safe and sober home environment" and "not be under the influence of any controlled substance that renders her unable to respond to her children's needs." Mother's responsibilities included participating in individual therapy session to address her history of trauma and exposure to violence, participating in a domestic violence program, cooperating with the assigned social worker, substance abuse testing, and participating in a 12-step program.3
In a May 2020 status review report, the Department reported that "[s]ubstance abuse has not been an issue for [Mother] during this review period." Mother reported that she had been off methamphetamines just over two years, used marijuana at night, and occasionally had an alcoholic drink. She also reported that she attended 12-step meetings when she felt she needed to: she told the social worker she would go to a meeting " ‘when I have a certain day then I know I will need a meeting and I will go,’ " and said, " ‘I don't get anything out of a meeting when it's forced.’ " At a hearing on May 7, 2020, the court ordered continued family maintenance services and set a further review hearing for October 2020. Mother's updated case plan required her to continue individual counseling, cooperate with the assigned social worker, and make herself available for random drug testing.
On September 9, 2020, about a year after the case had begun, and while Mother was receiving family maintenance services under the supervision of the juvenile court and the Department, a neighbor found Mother unconscious and unresponsive on the grass outside her apartment at around midnight, with 23-month-old A.G. nearby, crying and strapped in her stroller. Law enforcement and paramedics arrived; when mother was finally roused, she became combative and displayed indicators of intoxication including slurred speech and confusion. She admitted taking two "bars" of Xanax
, which she later acknowledged had not been prescribed for her. Mother was taken to the hospital and then arrested for child endangerment.
A.G. was taken into protective custody, first to the hospital for examination, and then placed in an emergency foster care home. As a result of this incident, the Department filed a supplemental petition on September 11, 2020, seeking a more restrictive placement ( § 387 ) alleging that the severity of Mother's substance abuse placed A.G. at risk in her care. In its "Prima Facie [sic ] in Support of Petition(s)," filed on September 14, the Department stated that the petition was being filed due to "general neglect, suspected parental substance abuse, and caretaker absence" by Mother. The Department reported, "[M]other maintains that what happened was a one-time accident and she was not able to acknowledge the severity of the situation for [A.G.]." The Department expressed "concern[ ] about the many risk factors this family continues to experience, including previous domestic violence, the mother's substance use, and mental health of the mother and [S.K.] despite the services already provided to the family" and on that basis recommended that A.G. remain detained.
At the detention hearing on September 14, Mother acknowledged through counsel that she had taken unprescribed medication, and requested A.G. be returned to her care. Mother's counsel stated Mother was "not unaware of how dangerous this was to her daughter" and she wanted to "reassess and focus on" her sobriety; counsel argued there was "no evidence that this is more than a one-time relapse." The juvenile court ordered that A.G. be detained and remain in emergency foster care. Addressing Mother, the court said,
In a jurisdiction/disposition report filed on October 6, 2020 the Department recommended that the court sustain the allegations in the supplemental petition and order reunification services for Mother. The Department reported that in an interview, Mother said she had obtained two Xanax pills from a friend "month...
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