In re I.B. CA1/1

Filed 10/21/22 In re I.B. CA1/1 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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 ONE

In re I.B., a Person Coming Under the Juvenile Court Law.

ALAMEDA COUNTY SOCIAL SERVICES AGENCY, Plaintiff and Respondent, A164574 v. (Alameda County MICHAEL B., Super. Ct. No. JD-033548-01) Defendant and Appellant.

Appellant Michael B. (Father) appeals from an order adjudging his daughter, I.B., a dependent minor and placing her in the care of I.B.’s mother, D.A. (Mother, who is not a party to this appeal). His sole argument on appeal is that the juvenile court erred when it declined his attorney’s request to continue the jurisdiction/disposition hearing because Father was incarcerated. Although Father had a right to be present for the hearing, any error in declining to continue the hearing was harmless. We therefore affirm.

I. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND Three-year-old I.B. came to the attention of respondent Alameda County Social Services Agency (the Agency) in spring 2021 after reports that Father tried to pistol whip Mother. The parents have never been married, their relationship ended when I.B. was around one, and Mother apparently was raising her daughter mostly on her own. The minor’s teeth were visibly rotting and she experienced pain when eating. The Agency filed a juvenile dependency petition in May 2021 under Welfare and Institutions Code section 300,1 subdivision (b)(1) (failure to protect) based on domestic violence between the parents in April and May, as well as on the minor’s severe tooth decay. The petition also alleged that Father’s willingness or ability to provide the minor with adequate support was unknown. (§ 300, subd. (g) [no provision for support].) The juvenile court detained the minor from Father, and she remained in Mother’s custody. The Agency recommended in a June 2021 jurisdiction/disposition report that the juvenile court sustain the dependency petition, that the minor remain with Mother, and that Mother and the minor receive family- maintenance services while Father receive informal child-welfare services. The report stated that Father denied harming Mother. An amended dependency petition that dropped allegations regarding the minor’s tooth decay was filed in early September 2021. The parties appeared for a jurisdiction/disposition hearing a few days later, on September 14. Father’s counsel stated she had not yet seen the amended