In re Maia P.
Filed 7/24/06 In re Maia P. CA3
NOT TO BE PUBLISHED
California Rules of Court, rule 977(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or ordered published, except as specified by rule 977(b). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 977.
IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA
THIRD APPELLATE DISTRICT
(Sacramento)
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| In re MAIA P., a Person Coming Under the Juvenile Court Law. | |
| SACRAMENTO COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, Plaintiff and Respondent, v. M.P., Defendant and Appellant. |
C051383
(Super. Ct. No. JD221152)
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M.P. (appellant), the father of Maia P. (the minor), appeals from an order of the juvenile court terminating his parental rights. (Welf. & Inst. Code, §§ 366.26, 395; further unspecified section references are to this code.) Appellant makes several contentions of alleged prejudicial error, including a claim that the court and Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) violated notice requirements of the Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978 (ICWA). (25 U.S.C. § 1901 et seq.) DHHS concedes ICWA notice requirements were not met. We reverse and remand for proper notice only.
FACTS AND PROCEEDINGS
On September 17, 2004, DHHS filed an original juvenile dependency petition pursuant to section 300 on behalf of the nearly three-year-old minor. That petition alleged the minor was at a substantial risk of suffering serious physical harm due to the minor's mother's failure to provide proper protection of the minor. The petition named appellant as the father of the minor, and averred that he was incarcerated in state prison. Appellant allegedly was serving a prison term of 25 years to life for killing the minor's maternal grandmother.
The social worker's report stated that ICWA applied. According to that report, the minor's mother had claimed Cherokee and Seminole Indian ancestry. Thereafter, DHHS sent notices of the dependency proceedings to the Cherokee and Seminole tribes.
At an October 2004 hearing, the juvenile court ordered DHHS to conduct home evaluations of any relatives of the minor who were seeking placement.
On November 9, 2004, the juvenile court found â€
