In re T.C. CA6

I. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

In early November 2023, the Department took custody of then one-year-old T.C. after Mother was arrested for child abuse and several drug related offenses.3 At the time of Mother’s arrest, Father was incarcerated in the Monterey County jail. On the day of Mother’s arrest, a social worker asked Mother and maternal grandmother whether they had Native American ancestry and both denied having any. The next day, the Department filed a petition seeking to assert dependency jurisdiction over T.C., on the grounds that Mother’s substance abuse put the child at substantial risk of harm and that neither Mother nor Father could care for the child. The Department attached an Indian Child Inquiry form (ICWA-010(A)) indicating that its inquiry gave no reason to believe that T.C. was or may be an Indian child. A few days later, a social worker asked Mother whether Father had any Native American ancestry and Mother responded he did not. Mother also stated Father was adopted, did not talk about his family, and indicated she did not know of any other paternal family members who would have more information about Father’s heritage. The social worker attempted…