In re L.C. CA6

I. BACKGROUND

The Santa Clara County Department of Family and Children’s Services alleged in 2024 that then-infant L.C. was at risk of serious physical harm in his parents’ care due to domestic violence exposure and mother’s erratic and violent behavior. (Welf. & Inst. 1 Code, § 300, subd. (b)(1); undesignated statutory references are to this Code.) According to the petition, mother suffered from bipolar disorder and acted violently toward father in L.C.’s presence. L.C. lived with his father, and father continued to see mother despite having a no-contact restraining order against her. The Department’s interviews with the parents revealed that both mother and father had a history of perpetrating intimate partner violence (IPV). L.C. was detained and placed in the protective custody of the Department in connection with an incident in January 2024 which resulted in mother’s arrest for violating a protective order and father’s arrest on outstanding warrants. The juvenile court sustained the petition, declared L.C. a dependent of the court, removed him from his parents’ custody, and placed him with his paternal grandmother. Both parents were granted reunification services and…