San Francisco Human Services Agency v. Stephanie M.

9 Cal. App. 5th 1090, 216 Cal. Rptr. 3d 23, 2017 Cal. App. LEXIS 243
CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal
DecidedMarch 17, 2017
DocketNos. A147877, A149683
StatusPublished
Cited by23 cases

This text of 9 Cal. App. 5th 1090 (San Francisco Human Services Agency v. Stephanie M.) 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
San Francisco Human Services Agency v. Stephanie M., 9 Cal. App. 5th 1090, 216 Cal. Rptr. 3d 23, 2017 Cal. App. LEXIS 243 (Cal. Ct. App. 2017).

Opinion

Opinion

REARDON, J.

—In these consolidated dependency actions, Stephanie M. (mother) contests the juvenile court’s detention and dispositional orders temporarily denying her visitation with her young son—Matthew C. (born Oct. 2015). Specifically, she argues that the juvenile court abused its discretion in suspending visitation between mother and son because there was no evidence that monitored visitation would have been contrary to the minor’s [1094]*1094safety. In addition, mother challenges by writ petition the juvenile court’s October 2016 decision to terminate her reunification services with respect to Matthew and refer the boy for permanency planning pursuant to section 366.26 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.1 In particular, mother disputes the evidentiary bases for the juvenile court’s findings that she failed to participate regularly and make substantive progress in court-ordered treatment, that there was no substantial probability that Matthew could be returned to her care within statutory timeframes, and that reasonable services were provided to her. In the published portion of this opinion, we join the Third District in concluding that parental visitation may be denied during the reunification period if such visitation would be inconsistent with the physical or emotional well-being of the child. (See In re T.M. (2016) 4 Cal.App.5th 1214 [209 Cal.Rptr.3d 391] (T.M.).) Using this standard, we affirm the juvenile court’s challenged visitation orders. In the unpublished portions of this opinion, we consider and deny mother’s writ petition.

I. BACKGROUND

A. Initial Dependency Proceedings

On October 23, 2015, the San Francisco Human Services Agency (Agency) filed a dependency petition pursuant to subdivisions (b) and (j) of section 300, alleging that Matthew C.—the minor who is the subject of these proceedings—had suffered, or was at substantial risk of suffering, serious physical harm or illness due to his parents’ substance abuse and domestic violence.2 In addition, the petition alleged that mother had three older children, none of whom were in her care. Specifically, mother’s daughter was in a legal guardianship with the maternal grandmother; her oldest son had an open dependency case in Santa Clara County where he was residing in a residential program under a permanent plan of long-term foster care; and the youngest of the three, also a son, had been privately adopted.

In its detention report filed the same day as the petition, the Agency stated that the police—responding to a domestic disturbance call on October 20, 2015, at approximately 2:00 a.m.—found mother and father drunk. According to mother, after a few hours of verbal attacks, father had slapped her three times across the face. She had punched him on the cheek, leaving a mark. All of this occurred within three feet of newborn Matthew and despite the fact that mother had an active restraining order against father.

[1095]*1095When mother and father were interviewed by Agency social workers the morning after the domestic dispute, both parents still appeared to be under the influence. Moreover, as the social workers approached the residence, father was seen outside with a 40-ounce beer, yelling “ ‘take the baby away from her. She doesn’t deserve it.’ ” That same day, father was arrested for disorderly conduct and public intoxication. Mother reported that father had had a drinking problem for as long as she had known him (approximately two years), but claimed that she had been sober for about a year. Prior to that time, mother had convictions for misdemeanor public intoxication in November 2013 and July 2014. In addition, mother had previously been diagnosed with bipolar disorder.

At the initial detention hearing on October 26, 2015, the juvenile court temporarily detained Matthew in foster care and continued the matter to the next day for further hearing. On October 27, the court confirmed the previous detention orders, made visitation orders, and authorized the Agency to release Matthew to mother at a residential treatment program, with the understanding that she would not leave the program with the child.

In its combined jurisdictional and dispositional report dated November 12, 2015, the Agency recommended that Matthew be declared a juvenile court dependent and that he reside with mother in residential treatment under a family maintenance plan. The Agency also provided some additional background with respect to mother’s drinking and mental health concerns. On the issue of mental health, mother reported that she was originally diagnosed with bipolar disorder when she was 15. Although she was prescribed medication, she did not take it as directed because she did not believe she needed it. Rather, she ascribed her out-of-control behaviors to teenage rebellion. After the petition in this matter was filed, mother entered the Jelani House residential treatment program on October 31, 2015, and discussed her mental health history with the staff psychiatrist there. According to mother, both she and the psychiatrist felt that a diagnosis of severe anxiety was more fitting, and thus mother was given a prescription to treat that condition.

With respect to her drinking, mother had gastric bypass surgery in 2008 and began drinking excessively in 2009 in the wake of her divorce. She had a history of homelessness since that time. Mother admitted that she was aware that she was not supposed to drink alcohol after a gastric bypass because the body absorbs it in an unhealthy manner. Nevertheless, mother continued to drink, stating that the only times she made conscious efforts to reduce or discontinue her consistent use were during her two most recent pregnancies. Mother admitted, however, that, while pregnant with Matthew, she had relapsed a “couple of times.”

[1096]*1096Moreover, mother acknowledged that spending time with father was a catalyst for her drinking. In the early stages of her pregnancy with Matthew, she reported going to a five-day detox program, to Safe Harbor for a month, and then to a three-month program in Santa Clara County, which helped her maintain her sobriety by offering her housing stability. Mother conceded that, during this time, father was in and out of jail, which added to her ability to remain sober. Nevertheless, mother reunited with father once he got out of jail, in hopes that they could be a family.

Mother also minimized the domestic violence occurring between the couple, despite the fact that, at the time of detention, there were four active restraining orders against father which named mother as the protected person. Further, although father had been convicted in March and June 2015 for restraining order violations, mother claimed not to remember the details of the incidents and downplayed their significance. Finally, father also had a history of domestic violence with other partners, with convictions in 2005 and 2012, as well as a conviction for willful cruelty to a child in 2008.

On the other hand, once Matthew was detained, mother took quick steps to enter a residential treatment program to address her substance abuse and separate herself from father. Further, neither mother nor Matthew tested positive for any substances at the time of the minor’s birth, mother had received consistent prenatal care for Matthew, and mother cared for the infant in the first days of his life.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
9 Cal. App. 5th 1090, 216 Cal. Rptr. 3d 23, 2017 Cal. App. LEXIS 243, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/san-francisco-human-services-agency-v-stephanie-m-calctapp-2017.