San Francisco Human Servs. Agency v. Christine C. (In re Caden C.)

34 Cal.App.5th 87

245 Cal.Rptr.3d 797

IN RE CADEN C., a Person Coming Under the Juvenile Court Law.

San Francisco Human Services Agency, Plaintiff and Appellant,

v.Christine C. et al., Defendants and Respondents;

Caden C., a Minor, Appellant.

A153925

A154042

Court of Appeal, First District, Division 1, California.

Filed April 9, 2019

As Modified April 10, 2019

Dennis J. Herrera, City Attorney, Kimiko Burton, Lead Attorney; Gordon-Creed, Kelley Holl and Sugerman, San Francisco, Jeremy Sugerman and Katie Curtis for Plaintiff and Appellant San Francisco Human Services Agency.

Nicole Williams, San Diego, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Respondent Christine C.

Michelle Danley, San Mateo, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Respondent Brian C.

Deborah Dentler, Glendale, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Appellant Minor Caden C.

Sanchez, J.

We are familiar with this dependency proceeding, having previously reviewed and upheld several prior court orders in the matter, including the juvenile court’s decision to set a permanency planning hearing pursuant to section 366.26 of the Welfare and Institutions Code¹ for then seven-year-old Caden C. ( C.C. v. Superior Court (Aug. 28, 2017, A151400 [nonpub. opn.].) 2017 WL 3700807 At the permanency planning hearing in early 2018, the juvenile court determined that Christine C. (mother) had established a beneficial relationship with Caden under section 366.26, subdivision (c)(1)(B)(i), sufficient to justify a permanent plan of long-term foster care rather than the statutorily preferred plan of adoption. Both Caden and the San Francisco Human Services Agency (Agency) appeal the court’s application of the beneficial relationship exception and decision to forgo termination of parental rights. Having consolidated and considered the two appeals, we conclude the juvenile court’s reliance on the beneficial relationship exception in this case was an abuse of discretion under the applicable legal standard. We therefore reverse.

I. BACKGROUND

A. Mother’s Prior Child Welfare History

Mother’s involvement with the child welfare system began in 1986 when her first child, M.C., was detained at birth after both mother and child tested positive for marijuana and cocaine. In August 1989, M.C. was again detained, this time with his younger brother B.P.C. (born in 1987). The same pattern continued for 30 years: each of mother’s six children would be removed from her care—sometimes several times—and declared a juvenile court dependent based on recurring concerns about mother’s chronic substance abuse, inability to care for her children, and domestic violence in the household. Mother would often enter residential drug treatment and stabilize temporarily, only to relapse again.

During this timeframe, sole custody of mother’s third child, T.A. (born in 1995), was granted to the noncustodial, nonoffending parent. Mother’s fourth child, B.C. (born in 2000), was removed and placed in the home of her paternal grandmother, who adopted her. Mother’s fifth child, N.C.-G. (born in 2002) was removed as a toddler from mother’s care and placed in legal guardianship with her paternal grandmother. Mother was convicted of felony drug offenses in 1991 and 2004. After conviction for a third felony drug offense in September 2006, mother was sentenced to three years in prison. It was into this significant history of dysfunction that Caden, the minor involved in these proceedings, was born in 2009.

B. Caden’s Initial Removal from Mother

Prior to his initial detention in September 2013, Marin County Health and Human Services (Marin CPS) was well aware of Caden’s situation, having received 11 referrals expressing concern for the minor’s well-being in mother’s custody. When Caden was a toddler, Marin CPS received reports that mother was actively smoking methamphetamine, including in a closed room with the minor present. Mother was seen getting angry and "taking it out" on the minor by pushing and throwing him in his crib. As a result of these referrals, mother signed a contract with Marin CPS, agreeing to obtain a sponsor, attend a baseline number of 12-step (AA/NA) meetings, and participate in random drug testing. Mother was offered voluntary services but declined them. The contract did not take. In May 2012, mother reportedly stated she had been smoking methamphetamine on a daily basis for two years. A drug task force searched mother’s home in Fall 2012, with Caden present, and found a methamphetamine pipe in mother’s purse. Other referrals in 2012 expressed concern about mother’s drug use in Caden’s presence and plan to sleep outdoors with Caden. Although Marin CPS offered funding for several nights’ shelter and arranged for mother to enter a treatment program, mother declined these resources.

Caden was taken into protective custody on September 11, 2013—at the age of four years three months. Mother and Caden were ineligible for transitional housing due to mother’s lack of employment and positive drug test for PCP in February. Mother’s "behavior and language was increasing in frequency and intensity"—she was observed screaming at Caden and was reported to have stated: " ‘I want to get rid of Caden so I can get high on Oxycodon.’ " Caden was not bathing and did not appear to be eating regularly. He was not enrolled in Head Start and only sporadically attended his speech therapy.

Mother defended her drug use, commenting that she does better on methamphetamine than without it. Mother admitted she was an addict but asserted she nevertheless took good care of her son. She stated she did not need a treatment program and did not understand why Caden had been removed from her. Although diagnosed with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression, mother was not taking medication or following through with mental health referrals. Caden was present when mother expressed extreme frustration, feelings of hopelessness, and suicidal thoughts. According to the social worker, mother was "relying on Caden for emotional support rather than focusing on his needs." In September 2013, Marin CPS filed a dependency petition with respect to Caden, stating the minor was at risk of harm due to mother’s entrenched substance abuse, mental health issues, and prior child welfare history with her other children.²

Agency reports revealed the traumatic impact of mother’s lifestyle on Caden. M.G. reported mother would scream at Caden and get physical with him. He stated that, although Caden loved mother, he seemed " ‘very confused’ " by all of the instability he witnessed. Father described the circumstances underlying his domestic violence conviction as follows: " ‘[Mother] was smoking meth, and dealing drugs, and put her hands on Caden too many times, so I put my hands on her once.’ " Mother’s case manager at a shelter program where she and Caden had recently stayed related that mother would yell at the minor and placed " ‘a lot of her problems onto him.’ "

Prior to his removal, mother and Caden had sporadically attended parent-child therapy but were dropped after repeatedly failing to appear when scheduled. Caden was diagnosed with disruptive behavior disorder and PTSD, with symptoms of aggression, impairment of social relationships, tantrums, regressions, and emotional dysregulation. In the social worker’s view, mother’s untreated drug addiction and mental health issues exposed Caden "to chronic trauma, instability, and dangerous situations including domestic violence, his parents’ alcohol and poly-substance abuse, and most recently, homelessness" after mother failed to take advantage of numerous community-based services. In November 2013, both mother and father submitted on an amended petition, and the juvenile court found that Caden was a child described by subdivision (b) of section 300.

At the dispositional hearing on January 14, 2014, the juvenile court declared Caden to be a juvenile court dependent, formally removed him from mother’s custody, and ordered visitation and reunification services for mother. Mother had reentered drug treatment in December 2013 and engaged with the program in earnest. In March 2014, mother filed a modification request pursuant to section 388, seeking C.C’s return to her care while she remained in treatment. The social worker opposed the modification, noting that mother’s recent period of sobriety was commendable but relatively short "in the context of her extremely lengthy substance abuse history." Specifically, mother had previously completed three detoxification programs and six stints in residential treatment, but continued to relapse on methamphetamine. The juvenile court denied mother’s modification petition in April as premature.

By the six-month review in July 2014, however, the social worker commended mother for her sustained progress in treatment. Mother had demonstrated a willingness to change her behavior and a desire to live a life free from alcohol and other drugs. She was actively working to contain her anger in stressful situations. She acknowledged that Caden’s emotional and physical well-being had been placed at significant risk by her drug addiction and untreated mental health issues. Although Caden reported he missed his mother and wanted to return home, he had been doing well since moving in February to the foster home of C.H. (Ms. H.). Caden’s therapist indicated he had "made remarkable progress since stabilizing in the second foster home placement," and the social worker acknowledged Ms. H.’s "dedication to stabilizing Caden’s mental, physical, and emotional health." Ms. H. proactively sought out developmental and educational services for Caden and facilitated visitation not only with mother, but also with Caden’s stepfather.

Given mother’s progress, Caden was returned to her in July 2014 in her residential program and family maintenance services were ordered. The next six-month review was also positive. Mother had remained sober and was actively...