In re D.S. CA2/2

Filed 6/24/14 In re D.S. CA2/2 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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 TWO

In re D.S. et al., Persons Coming Under the B250813 Juvenile Court Law. (Los Angeles County Super. Ct. No. CK99002)

LOS ANGELES COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN AND FAMILY SERVICES,

Plaintiff and Respondent,

v.

S.J.,

Defendant and Appellant.

APPEAL from an order of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County, Jacqueline H. Lewis, Commissioner. Affirmed.

Matthew I. Thue, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant.

John F. Krattli, County Counsel, James M. Owens, Assistant County Counsel, and Jessica S. Mitchell, Deputy County Counsel, for Plaintiff and Respondent.

_________________________

Appellant S.J. (mother) appeals from the juvenile court’s jurisdictional and dispositional order. She contends there is insufficient evidence to support the jurisdictional finding that she placed her children at risk of harm by leaving them with a registered sex offender and that the juvenile court abused its discretion by requiring her to participate in sexual abuse awareness counseling. We disagree and affirm. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND Mother has three children—son D.S. (age 9), and daughters A.A. (age 5) and K.A. (age 3). Lee A. (father) is the presumed father of the girls and has known D.S. since he was a baby and considers him a son. D.S. refers to father as “Dad.” Mother has a criminal history including convictions for grand theft, forgery and embezzlement, and arrests for loitering with the intent to prostitute and drug possession. She has been diagnosed with major depressive disorder. Father has an extensive criminal history, including several drug-related convictions. In 1984, father was convicted on a charge of lewd or lascivious acts with a child under 14 years of age. Father is a registered sex offender. The Referrals In May 2012, the Los Angeles Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) received a referral alleging that mother had moved to Las Vegas, and the minors were at risk of sexual abuse by father, with whom they were living upon his release from prison for selling drugs. The referral was closed as inconclusive due to loss of contact with the parents, and the minors began living with the paternal grandparents. In November 2012, DCFS received a second referral of sexual abuse by father. Father contacted DCFS to inquire about gaining custody of the minors. During a subsequent interview, father claimed that mother had been missing since October 26, 2012 and that he thought she might be using drugs. Father admitted that when he was 18 years old he had a sexual interaction with his 11-year-old cousin. The paternal aunt and paternal great aunt, who lived in the same house with father and the minors, reported that father was taking good care of the minors and that he was never left alone with them. Father’s probation officer, who had worked with father for about seven to eight months,