In re Z.S. CA1/4

Filed 1/19/21 In re Z.S. CA1/4 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

FIRST APPELLATE DISTRICT

DIVISION FOUR

In re Z.S., a Person Coming Under the Juvenile Court Law.

CONTRA COSTA COUNTY CHILDREN AND FAMILY SERVICES BUREAU, A158875 Plaintiff and Respondent, v. (Contra Costa County Super. Ct. Nos. J19-00313, J19- Z.S., 00314) Defendant and Appellant.

Z.S. (father) appeals from the juvenile court’s disposition order denying him reunification services in the dependency matter concerning his children, Z.S. and Z.S. (children) under Welfare and Institutions Code1 section 300. Father contends the juvenile court erred at the jurisdictional hearing by not conducting a hearing under People v. Marsden (1970) 2 Cal.3d 118 (Marsden) when father told the court his lawyer had not relayed to the court his desire for such a hearing. We conclude the record does not support father’s

1 Undesignated statutory references are to the Welfare and Institutions Code.

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contention that he asked for a Marsden hearing, so the juvenile court did not err.

I. BACKGROUND In August 2019, the juvenile court assumed jurisdiction over the children based on its finding that the children’s mother’s mental illness and acts of domestic violence against father placed them at serious risk of physical harm. The juvenile court also found father might have an undiagnosed mental illness and had engaged in domestic violence against mother, which also placed the children at serious risk of physical harm. The court further found father’s reunification services had been terminated as to the children’s half-sibling, which created a substantial risk that the children would be abused or neglected. Father was incarcerated in county jail at the time of the jurisdiction hearing and remained in jail at the time of the disposition hearing. At the disposition hearing, the juvenile court placed the children under the supervision of the Contra Costa County Children and Family Services Bureau and ordered reunification services for mother. The juvenile court denied reunification services for father, because it found father had failed to address his mental health issues that had led to the removal of the children’s half-sibling in a prior dependency case.