Thompson v. County of L.A. CA2/8

Filed 10/20/22 Thompson v. County of L.A. CA2/8 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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

NATASHA THOMPSON, B307969 & B311569

Plaintiff and Appellant, Los Angeles County Super. Ct. No. BC687511 v.

COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES et al.,

Defendants and Respondents.

APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County, Mark A. Young, Judge. Affirmed. The Law Office of Cliff Dean Schneider and Cliff Dean Schneider for Plaintiff and Appellant. David Weiss Law, David J. Weiss, Nicholas A. Weiss, and Skyla L. Gordon for Defendants and Respondents. ____________________

Natasha Thompson sued the County of Los Angeles and other county defendants (the County) for removing her son, J.G., from her care. The County demurred. The trial court sustained the demurrer without leave to amend. It found the County was immune from suit and Thompson failed to allege a mandatory duty sufficient to overcome immunity. Thompson appealed (appellate case No. B307969). She says she alleged a mandatory duty and, in the alternative, the court should have allowed her to amend her complaint. The court later denied Thompson’s motion to tax expert witness fees. Thompson appealed this ruling (appellate case No. B311569). We consolidated the two appeals for oral argument and opinion. We affirm. I J.G. is the son of Natasha Thompson and Delmas Griffin. On August 31, 2016, when he was four years old, J.G. fell at his school’s playground. The fall fractured his arm. J.G. has a developmental delay and was nonverbal. Two days after the fall, J.G.’s parents took him to a doctor. The doctor did not diagnose the fracture as abuse by J.G.’s parents. The principal at J.G.’s school called the Los Angeles Police Department and reported physical abuse of J.G. by an unknown party. The Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services investigated J.G.’s injury. A Department social worker spoke to police officers, J.G.’s school principal, Thompson, Griffin, and J.G. The social worker reported that when she asked