Appellate Defenders, Inc. v. CHERI S.

In this petition for extraordinary relief, we determine an indigent parent is entitled to appointed appellate counsel where that parent’s rights have been terminated in a proceeding freeing his or her child from custody and control (Fam. Code, § 7822) or in a proceeding declaring that parent’s consent unnecessary for a stepparent adoption. (§§ 9000, 8604.) Relying on In re Jacqueline H. (1978) 21 Cal.3d 170 [ 145 Cal.Rptr. 548 , 577 P.2d 683 ], and the legislative history of section 7895, we conclude the right to an effective appeal exists in all proceedings which terminate parental rights, whether the proceedings are initiated by private persons or the state. Accordingly we deny the petition to vacate the appointment of appellate counsel.

Factual and Procedural Background

Allen B. (father) petitioned to declare his daughters Jenna B. and Falon B. free from the custody and control of their mother Cheri S. (mother) under section 7822, subdivision (a). (San Diego County Super. Ct., No. A40433.) Father alleged mother left the girls in his custody for over one year without providing for their support and with the intent to abandon them. The parents had divorced in 1989,…