In re J.J. CA2/8

Filed 10/9/25 In re J.J. CA2/8 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

SECOND APPELLATE DISTRICT

DIVISION EIGHT

In re J.J., a Person Coming B344967 Under the Juvenile Court Law.

LOS ANGELES COUNTY (Los Angeles County DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN Super. Ct. No. 21CCJP02437) AND FAMILY SERVICES, Plaintiff and Respondent,

v.

B.J.,

Defendant and Appellant.

APPEAL from an order of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County. Jean M. Nelson, Judge. Affirmed. Jack A. Love, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant. Dawyn R. Harrison, County Counsel, Kim Nemoy, Assistant County Counsel, and Peter Ferrera, Principal Deputy County Counsel, for Plaintiff and Respondent. **********

B.J. (Mother) appeals from the juvenile court’s order terminating her parental rights at the permanency planning hearing. (Welf. & Inst. Code, § 366.26.) Mother contends she demonstrated the elements of the parental benefit exception (§ 366.26, subd. (c)(1)(B)(i)), and the juvenile court abused its discretion in choosing adoption as the permanent plan and freeing her infant son J.J. to be adopted. We conclude mother has not shown the juvenile court abused its discretion and therefore affirm. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND In September 2023, the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) detained one-month-old J.J. because Mother’s substance abuse and mental illness interfered with her ability to care for J.J. and placed him at substantial risk of serious physical injury. (Welf. & Inst. Code, § 300, subds. (b) & (j).) At the time of his birth, J.J.’s older brother and sister were dependents of the juvenile court, having been detained from Mother in May 2021. In connection with that dependency proceeding, Mother had multiple positive tests for cocaine and/or marijuana in the weeks after J.J.’s birth. A referral was therefore made to DCFS regarding J.J. In November 2024, while these proceedings were pending, the juvenile court terminated Mother’s parental rights to J.J.’s brother and sister, and this court affirmed that order on appeal. (In re E.M. et al., (Jun. 30, 2025, B342050) [nonpub.opn.].) Mother’s parental rights were also terminated in 2016 to an older half sibling, who was adopted in 2019. During the reunification period, Mother was mostly consistent with visitation and generally had positive interactions with J.J. However, Mother could not parent J.J. She did not