In re Ava O. CA4/3

FACTS

Given the limited issue on appeal, we provide only a brief summary of the proceedings in this case. In September 2024, Ava (then age 15) and her older brother2 told staff at their high school that they were afraid to leave school with Mother due to her mental health issues and history of trying to institutionalize them. Law enforcement detained Ava, her older brother, and their younger sister (then age 11), and the children were placed with their maternal aunt and uncle. The children reported to the Orange County Social Services Agency that Mother believes they are “‘deviant’” and has a history of

1 Mother does not contest the juvenile court’s jurisdictional

findings or the order removing the children from her care. Brandon O. (Father) joins in Mother’s appeal and raises no independent arguments. 2 Ava’s brother is now 18 years old and is not a subject of this

appeal.

2 threatening to place them in residential treatment facilities, behavioral camps, and defiance programs. Ava recounted that on one occasion, Mother told her and her brother “to pack their things and be ready to leave in the morning.” Her younger sister likewise expressed fear that Mother would show up at…