Yuridia S. v. Super. >Ct. >





















Filed 11/4/10 Yuridia S. v. Super. Ct.
CA4/3













NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN OFFICIAL REPORTS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opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for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



FOURTH APPELLATE DISTRICT



DIVISION THREE




>

YURIDIA S., Petitioner, v. THE SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF ORANGE, Respondent; ORANGE COUNTY SOCIAL SERVICES AGENCY, Real Party In Interest.

G043941 (Super. Ct. No. DP014081) O P I N I O N

Original
proceedings; petition for a writ of mandate/prohibition to challenge an order
of the Superior Court of Orange
County, Dennis J. Keough, Judge.
Writ denied.

Juvenile
Defenders and Susan Do for Petitioner.

Nicholas
S. Chrisos, County Counsel; Karen L. Christensen, Deputy County Counsel for Real
Party in Interest.

* *
*

Orange
County Social Services Agency (SSA) filed a Welfare and Institutions Code
section 387[1] petition
after Yuridia S. (Mother) absconded with her special needs son, Jesus C., to
North Carolina following a tumultuous two years of family maintenance
services. The juvenile court denied
Mother reunification services and removed Jesus from her custody. In this writ petition, Mother contends there
was insufficient evidence of danger to
support the order removing Jesus from her custody. We conclude the contention lacks merit, and
we deny the writ petition.

I

When
Jesus was four years old he was taken into protective custody after a person
reported Jesus was seen chewing on a small plastic bag filled with a white
powdery substance and he was often left unattended. The person making the report stated Mother's
response to the situation was to laugh and state it was probably drugs. The social worker was shown photographs of
Jesus biting a plastic bag, and other photographs of him with a white substance
covering his clothes, hands, and mouth.
Mother admitted she had found Jesus playing in the bathroom sink with
white powder on his clothes. She found a
plastic bag in her living room, and after tasting its contents, her mouth felt
numb and she felt nauseated. She did not
seek medical attention for Jesus. The
police reported the baggie contained cocaine.

Jesus
was developmentally delayed, legally blind, not potty trained, and had serious
behavioral issues. He had a history of
biting others and screaming uncontrollably.
One of Mother's roommates reported Mother often allowed Jesus to walk in
the front yard by himself. Mother
explained she allowed Jesus to play outside because she wanted him to learn to
be independent. She admitted it was
difficult to provide for her son, and she had a hard time coping with caring
for a special needs child. Jesus did not
sleep well and food was scarce. Mother
recognized she did not understand the extent of her son's medical conditions,
but she was afraid to take him to a doctor and she lacked medical insurance. Mother agreed she could benefit from
counseling.

Mother
stated she missed medical appointments and school meetings because she did not
have the time or transportation to attend them.
Mother was not employed, but survived by cleaning, babysitting, and
managing a home in exchange for food and a place to live. She had been receiving free diapers from Regional Center but now Jesus was too old to receive that service and
a tenant of the house was providing the diapers. Mother stated she did not have family members
living in the United States. She relied on
two friends for help.

The
social worker observed Jesus was clean and active, but very thin. Mother interacted with Jesus in a loving and
appropriate manner, and he responded to her the same way, seeking her
attention. The social worker and the
Public Health Nurse, April Orozco, met with Jesus's teacher, Annee
Hartzell. Jesus's classroom was for
blind children and his teacher, Hartzell, was blind as well. Hartzell stated she was concerned Jesus had
difficulty walking, he did not appear to have experience with toys, he had a
limited vocabulary, he was not potty trained, and he appeared to lack daily
stimulation. Hartzell believed neglect
and the lack of parenting skills contributed to some of Jesus's problems. She opined the child's difficulty with
walking was a sign he was often carried and not taught to walk. Hartzell said Mother admitted she isolated
the child and did not let him walk for safety reasons. Mother told Hartzell she did not interact
with Jesus, and they were too poor to afford toys. Hartzell opined Jesus was functioning at the
level of a two-year-old. Hartzell had
recently purchased Jesus a walking cane, and she was teaching him how to use
it.

Orozca
and the social worker made an unnanounced home visit. During their conversation with Mother, the
social worker noticed Jesus had three two-inch nails in his mouth that he had
found on the window seal. The social
worker learned Jesus was born extremely premature (26 weeks gestation) and he
was diagnosed with glaucoma, bilateral cornea opacification, bilateral
calcification, and congenital bilateral dysgenesis. Mother left Jesus's father after he hit her
and threw then eight-month-old Jesus on the bed and his whereabouts were unknown.

On
September
20, 2006, Jesus was placed at
Orangewood Children's Home (Orangewood) following an unsuccessful placement
with Hartzell. At Orangewood he was
evaluated and it was determined he had been neglected, and he may have
adjustment disorder, pervasive developmental disorder, mental retardation, and
blindness.

The
social worker recommended Mother receive reunification services. Mother denied most of the allegations in the
petition, and denied Jesus had the baggie of cocaine in his mouth. However, at the hearing she pled no contest
to an amended petition. The court
declared Jesus a dependent of the court and ordered Mother receive services.

In
a report prepared for the six-month review hearing, the social worker
recommended further reunification services.
Jesus was placed in a foster home.
In compliance with her case plan, Mother had completed a parenting
class, she was attending individual therapy, and she had a full-time job. She enjoyed monitored visits three times a
week. However, Mother stated she was
tired of drug testing and maintained she did not have a drug problem. She had several negative tests, but twice she
refused to test.

In
January 2007, social worker Evacel Ortuno informed Mother she needed to make
further progress with her case plan and she must give SSA notice if she
moved. Mother was referred to a second
parenting class. It was reported Mother
had unstable housing.

Jesus
was taking melatonin to address his problem of sleeping during the day and
staying awake at night because he could not perceive light. He was diagnosed with having complete retinal
detachment in both eyes, glaucoma, corneal opacification, orbital hypoplasia,
and enophthalmos (sunken eyes), all which rendered him completely blind. At school he had an Individualized Education
Plan (IEP) calling for occupational and individual therapy. Jesus enjoyed listening to music and
singing. He was affectionate and liked
to touch and smell people's hands as a way to identify them. After several months, Jesus was sleeping
better at night and he was taken off melatonin.

Mother
enjoyed consistent monitored visits during the first six months of
dependency. She taught her son numbers,
letters, and songs. She also fed and
played with him. She missed one IEP
meeting, claiming her employer would not let her leave work. She did not want Ortuno to call her employer
to explain the importance of the IEP meetings.
During one visit in March, Mother left Jesus unattended for 30
minutes. The monitor noticed that during
a visit in April, Mother â€