JESSICA A. v. Superior Court

Jessica A. (the mother) and Jesus O. (the father) seek review of juvenile court orders terminating their reunification services and setting a hearing under Welfare and Institutions Code section 366.26. The mother contends there is not substantial evidence to support the juvenile court’s finding that she did not make substantive progress with the provisions of her case plan. The father contends substantial evidence does not support the finding that he was offered or provided with reasonable reunification services. Both parents assert that the court abused its discretion in finding there was no substantial probability their children could be returned to them by the 12-month hearing date. The mother also maintains that the court erroneously looked to the date previously set for the 12-month review hearing, rather than a date six months from the time of the six-month review hearing, in determining whether there was a substantial probability that the children would be returned to the parents. In the published portion of this opinion we conclude that the trial court properly looked to the date previously set for the 12-month hearing to decide whether there was a substantial…