In re A.A. CA4/1

Filed 5/13/25 In re A.A. CA4/1 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or ordered published, except as specified by rule 8.1115(b). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.

COURT OF APPEAL, FOURTH APPELLATE DISTRICT

DIVISION ONE

STATE OF CALIFORNIA

In re A.A., a Person Coming Under the Juvenile Court Law. D085529 IMPERIAL COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES, (Super. Ct. No. JJP001393)

Plaintiff and Respondent,

v.

P.A. et al.,

Defendants and Appellants.

APPEAL from orders of the Superior Court of Imperial County, William D. Quan, Judge. Reversed and remanded. Robert McLaughlin, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant P.A. Marisa L. D. Conroy, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant J.A. Kelly Ranasinghe, Deputy County Counsel, for Plaintiff and Respondent.

J.A. (Mother) and P.A. (Father) filed notices of appeal after their parental rights were terminated. (Welf. & Inst. Code, § 366.26.) In their opening briefs, they argued the Imperial County Department of Social Services (the Department) failed to comply with its duties under the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) (25 U.S.C. ch. 21, § 1901 et seq.). The Department agrees. The parties filed a joint stipulation for conditional reversal and limited remand. (See Code Civ. Proc., § 128, subd. (a)(8) (all further statutory references are to the Code of Civil Procedure).) Because we conclude the motion has merit, we conditionally reverse the order and remand the matter.

BACKGROUND A. General Background The Department filed a petition after a sheriff’s deputy found four- month-old A.A. alone in a vehicle, while his parents were approximately 35 yards away. The Department alleged A.A. was dirty, with matted hair and a scaly patch on his scalp, a soiled diaper, and a severe diaper rash. His mother appeared to be under the influence of an illicit substance. His father had fled from deputies four days earlier, with A.A., and he made criminal threats against the landlord on the date deputies found A.A. alone. The court found the allegations true at a June 17, 2024 contested jurisdiction hearing. Following a contested disposition trial on August 26, 2024, the court denied reunification services. The court held a trial to terminate parental rights on January 22, 2025. At that hearing, the court terminated parental rights and found A.A. adoptable. B. ICWA Both parents reported to the social worker there was reason to believe A.A. is a Native American child and completed Parental Notification of