SAN FRANCISCO — The California First District Court of Appeal recently denied the appellant's petition "for extraordinary writ relief" in the case of Jaime O. vs. The Superior Court of Marin County and Marin County Health and Human Services.
In its April 10 decision, the appeals court agreed with the juvenile court's decision that there was reason to believe that returning Y.O., a six-year-old girl, to her father's care would be "a substantial risk."
According to the appeals court decision, Y.O. who has not lived with her father, Jaime O. in four years, "became a dependent of the juvenile court" in April 2014.
The appeals court said "she was first detained from her mother Miranda T. in October 2015," and the Marin County Department of Health and Human Services Department "provided father supportive services for 18 months and then reunification services for 12 months."
After the 12 months, the juvenile court scheduled a hearing on April 3 under Welfare and Institutions Code, according to court documents.
According to the jurisdictional report that the appeals court cited, Y.O.'s parents got into an argument while they were bathing her. Her mother allegedly suffered an anxiety attack and tried to call the police, but her father terminated the call. He was later arrested for domestic violence and false imprisonment, according to court records.
In March 2012, the father allegedly stabbed himself in the leg with a steak knife. He was taken into custody for evaluation.
The appeals court said that the department received "15 referrals regarding Y.O.’s family from April 2011 to February 2014."
According to the appeals court decision, found Y.O.'s mother "yelling and banging her head very hard on the stairs" before attempting to kick an officer. The mother was taken into custody.
The appeals court said that on Feb. 26, 2014, the department took custody of Y.O., who was three years old at the time, alleging that her mother was not able to care for Y.O. due to "mental illness."
The appeals court wrote that Y.O. was placed in foster care on Oct. 16, 2015 after an explosion at her maternal grandfather's house on and granted her father "supervised visitation." According to the appeals court decision, the juvenile court upheld this petition on Dec. 7, 2015 and gave Jaime O. "supervised visitation two times per month for a total of four hours per month," and the mother got "two hours weekly visitation."
The appeals court said that on Jan. 7, 2016, the department recommended family reunification services for Y.O.'s parents and on Feb. 29, 2016, the juvenile court ordered Y.O. removed from her parents' custody.
The appeals court ruled that Jaime O. "did not make significant progress on his case plan as he did not take a parenting class or meet with the parent advocate, and he committed two law violations in violation of his probation."