Plumas County Department of Social Services v. Margaret G.

Opinion

SPARKS, J. Margaret and Daniel G., the natural parents of the minor Elizabeth G., appeal from an order of the juvenile court after a permanency planning review hearing. The order directed that Elizabeth be placed in the home of her aunt and uncle in New Jersey. Margaret contends that the juvenile court failed to make the requisite finding that a return of Elizabeth to the custody of her parents would be detrimental and that in any event the department of social services failed to meet its burden of establishing that her return would create a substantial risk of detriment. Daniel makes a similar claim and argues that the court committed reversible error by violating the mandate of Welfare and Institutions Code section 366.2, subdivision (e). Because we find these contentions to be unpersuasive, we shall affirm.

Procedural and Factual Background

In September, 1985, an amended petition was filed alleging that Elizabeth, then five years of age, was a dependent child within the meaning of Welfare and Institutions Code section 300, subdivisions (a) and (d) (unless otherwise specified further statutory references are to that code).1 The petition alleged that: (1) Daniel was unable to provide appropriate care of Elizabeth due to limited intelligence and past inability to adequately care for her; (2) Margaret was incarcerated for suspected violations of Penal Code sections 288 and 288a and an investigation revealed that Elizabeth had been present when her mother was sexually active with other minors and her sister; and (3) Elizabeth had played sexual games with other minors which an investigation indicated may have been instigated by Margaret.

A jurisdictional report indicated that in the previous few years the department of social services had received numerous reports concerning the family from such persons as school officials, sheriff’s officers, housing officials, medical personnel, and concerned citizens. The reports generally concerned extraordinarily filthy living conditions and instances of child [1330]neglect. Daniel’s father reported that Daniel is mentally retarded and would be unable to care for the children by himself. Although services were provided to the family, the minors were removed from the home when an investigation disclosed that Margaret had engaged in sexual conduct with Jennifer and other children. On October 10, 1985, after a contested jurisdictional hearing, the court sustained the petition. At the dispositional hearing medical evidence was introduced which indicated that both Elizabeth and Jennifer had been sexually molested and suifered from other untreated medical problems. The court ordered that Elizabeth be placed in foster care and directed appellants to undergo psychological testing and to attend parenting classes and counseling.