In re D'J.A. CA2/6

Facts and Procedural Background Mother and father have two children: D’J.A. (born September 2021) and D’A.A. (born May 2023).2 In May 2023, Ventura County Human Services Agency received a referral after mother and D’A.A. tested positive for amphetamine at D’A.A.’s birth. Mother also tested positive for cannabis. In June 2023, the agency obtained a protective custody warrant after mother failed to enroll in a substance abuse treatment program and tested positive for methamphetamine. The agency also filed petitions alleging the children came within the provisions of section 300. At the jurisdiction and disposition hearing, the juvenile court found the allegations in the petitions to be true, ordered the children removed from parents’ custody and placed with maternal grandfather and his wife, and ordered reunification services for both parents. In January 2024, at the six-month review hearing, the juvenile court found parents’ progress in their case plan services was “minimal.” It terminated reunification services as to both parents and set the matter for a section 366.26 hearing. Prior to the section 366.26 hearing, mother filed a section 388 petition for each child. She asserted a…