Los Angeles County Department of Children & Family v. Jose C.

204 Cal. App. 4th 1317, 139 Cal. Rptr. 3d 686, 2012 Cal. App. LEXIS 414
CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal
DecidedApril 12, 2012
DocketNo. B231729
StatusPublished
Cited by57 cases

This text of 204 Cal. App. 4th 1317 (Los Angeles County Department of Children & Family v. Jose C.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering California Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Los Angeles County Department of Children & Family v. Jose C., 204 Cal. App. 4th 1317, 139 Cal. Rptr. 3d 686, 2012 Cal. App. LEXIS 414 (Cal. Ct. App. 2012).

Opinions

[1319]*1319Opinion

BIGELOW, P. J.

—The current consolidated appeal arises from related proceedings which are being addressed together in the juvenile dependency court. In one proceeding, the dependency court sustained allegations that Jose C., Sr., had sexually abused the 11-year-old daughter of a cohabitant, and that the child’s mother knew of that abuse but failed to take action to protect the child against the abuse. As a result, the court found the victim of the direct abuse, and her siblings in the family home, were at risk of physical and emotional harm, including a risk of sexual abuse. In the related proceeding, based upon the same evidence of sexual abuse involving the 11-year-old child, the court sustained allegations that Jose C., Sr., presented a risk of sexual abuse to his own adolescent sons who lived in the family home, and posed a risk to his own teenage daughter who lived with her mother. On appeal, Jose C., Sr., challenges the dependency court’s findings that he poses a risk of emotional and physical harm and sexual abuse as to any and all of the children. He argues the findings are based on evidence which is incompetent, not credible and insubstantial. We affirm as to the children in the family home and reverse as to the child not living in the family home.

FACTS

The Family Backgrounds

Jose C., Sr., and Angelica L. are the parents of Ana C., bom in 1993, Jose C., Jr., bom in 1998, and Eric C., bom in 2000. The parents separated in 2003. Pursuant to custody proceedings in 2006, Ana C. went to live with Angelica L., while Jose C., Jr., and Eric C. lived with Jose C., Sr.

Esmeralda R and a father whose whereabouts are not known are the parents of Kimberly A. (the sexual abuse victim), bom in 1996, and Jacqueline A., bom in 2002.

The two families became interrelated when Jose C., Sr., Jose C., Jr., and Eric C. moved into a family home with Esmeralda F., Kimberly A. and Jacqueline A. Together, Esmeralda F. and Jose C., Sr., had one child, Yesenia C., bom in 2007.

The Dependency Proceedings

On June 9, 2010, the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) received a referral, apparently from Kimberly A.’s school, alleging sexual abuse involving Kimberly A. The same day, a DCFS case social worker (CSW) spoke with the reporting party. The reporting party [1320]*1320stated that a friend of Kimberly A.’s had relayed that Kimberly A.’s stepfather (i.e., Jose C., Sr.) was forcing Kimberly A. to have oral sex with him when Kimberly A.’s mother was out of the family home. The CSW then interviewed Kimberly A. The CSW wrote down Kimberly A.’s statements as follows: “My father has touched me in my private parts. My father is Jose. The day that my father touched my private parts was at night after I turned off the television and I believe [it] was on a weekend because I did not have to go to school the next day. I don’t recall the exact date of the incident but it might be November or December of 2008. My father touched my private when I was 11 years old. I was lying down on the sofa watching television and my father came out of his children’s room. My father went to check if my mom was asleep and she was so he came over to my bed (which is the sofa). My father told me to turn around so I was on my right side and my back was towards my father. My father then got into the bed and lay on the side of me but I was not facing him. My father then grabbed me here (CSW observed that child pointed to her breast) then he touched my ‘cosa’ (when child would say ‘cosa’ she would point to vagina) over my clothes. My father asked me to, ‘chupa me mi parte’ (suck my private part). I told my father, ‘no.’ My father then began to take off my shirt then my shorts and then my underwear. ... So the only thing that he left on was my pink bra. My father then sucked my vagina then he sucked my right breast. After he did that he just got out my bed and walked by to Jose and [Eric’s] room. I put my clothes back on and just lay in bed. Soon my sibling Jacqueline came to sleep in the bed with me. Me and Jacqueline share the same bed in the living room. When father did this to me my mother was in her bedroom asleep with my sibling Yesenia and Jacqueline and Jose and [Eric] were in their bedroom. Nobody saw what my father did to me.”

After the interview at school, the CSW took Kimberly A. to a local police station where she met with two officers. The written police reports of Kimberly A.’s statements disclose the following: Kimberly A. told the officers that the incident happened when she was 11 years old, on a December school night. She said her brothers were asleep and her sisters were in her parents’ room. She was lying down on the sofa bed in the living room watching television when her stepfather lay down next to her. He fondled her breasts over her shirt with one hand while touching her vagina with the other. She said that he put his “private” in her “butt” for “two minutes.” When asked what she meant by “private,” she said it was his “thing” and pointed to her crotch area. She said her stepfather’s act caused her to feel pain. Kimberly A. told the police officers that she did not say or do anything because she was scared and did not understand what was happening. She said that when her stepfather was done, he got dressed and went back to [1321]*1321his bedroom. After her stepfather left, Jacqueline A. came out of the parents’ bedroom and lay down next to Kimberly A. to sleep, which was their normal sleeping arrangement. Kimberly A. said that she told her mother about the incident the next day, and her mother said that she would not let it happen again. Kimberly A. did not tell anyone about the incident until June 2010, almost two years after it allegedly occurred. Kimberly A. stated that she had not reported the abuse incident earlier because she did not want anything to happen to her stepfather.

Sometime later the same day, the CSW (accompanied by another social worker, and then by police officers) went to the family home, where they interviewed Esmeralda F., Jose C., Sr., Jacqueline A., Jose C., Jr., and Eric C. All of the family members denied that any abuse could have occurred and said that Kimberly A. was lying. Esmeralda F. told the CSW that Jose C., Sr., had not sexually abused any of the children, and that Kimberly A. tended to “lie about things.” Esmeralda F. said that Kimberly A.’s teacher had twice reported hearing Kimberly A. telling classmates about sexual actions that Jose C., Sr., and Esmeralda F. had engaged in, but because the adults never did anything sexual in front of the children, Esmeralda F. did not know where Kimberly A. was getting her information. Esmeralda F. denied that Kimberly A. had ever told her that Jose C., Sr., had touched her private parts. Esmeralda F. also said that she had never witnessed Jose C., Sr., touching Kimberly A. inappropriately.

Jose C., Sr., denied Kimberly A.’s allegations, stating; “I take all the children to school in the morning. I have never done something like that to Kimberly or any other children. I have never acted inappropriate with Kimberly. I have never sexually abused any child or adult.” .

Kimberly A. and her sisters, Jacqueline A. and Yesenia C., were detained. Jose C., Sr., was apparently arrested at the family home.1 Also on the same day, the CSW removed Jose C., Jr., and Eric C. from Jose C., Sr.’s home, and took them to the home of their mother (Angelica L.).

Kimberly A. received a forensic medical examination.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

In re C.B. CA4/3
California Court of Appeal, 2026
In re Y.S. CA4/3
California Court of Appeal, 2025
In re Christopher R. CA2/8
California Court of Appeal, 2025
In re A.S. CA1/2
California Court of Appeal, 2025
In re K.C. CA2/3
California Court of Appeal, 2025
D.L. v. Superior Court CA5
California Court of Appeal, 2024
In re Israel T. CA2/7
California Court of Appeal, 2024
In re A.O. CA4/2
California Court of Appeal, 2024
M.A. v. B.F.
California Court of Appeal, 2024
In re D.F. CA4/1
California Court of Appeal, 2024
In re S.M. CA4/2
California Court of Appeal, 2023
Marriage of Thompson CA1/1
California Court of Appeal, 2023
In re E.D. CA4/3
California Court of Appeal, 2023
Marriage of Kimbrell CA4/1
California Court of Appeal, 2023
People v. Garza CA4/2
California Court of Appeal, 2023
In re Vanessa C. CA2/7
California Court of Appeal, 2022
People v. Mandujano CA5
California Court of Appeal, 2022
In re Gabriel T. CA2/4
California Court of Appeal, 2022
In re A.M. CA1/5
California Court of Appeal, 2022

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
204 Cal. App. 4th 1317, 139 Cal. Rptr. 3d 686, 2012 Cal. App. LEXIS 414, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/los-angeles-county-department-of-children-family-v-jose-c-calctapp-2012.