In Re Marcus G.

In this appeal we are called upon to examine the juvenile court’s jurisdiction when a minor who has previously been declared a dependent of the juvenile court commits an act that brings him within the juvenile delinquency system. We conclude that the juvenile court erred in dismissing the dependency proceedings, and we remand for further proceedings to determine what status is appropriate for the. minor.

Factual and Procedural Background

Marcus G. was bom September 5, 1982, and a dependency petition was sustained by the San Mateo County Juvenile Court in 1983 when he was four months old. The matter was transferred to the San Francisco Juvenile Court, as Marcus’s mother resided in San Francisco, and Marcus was there declared a dependent of the court. Marcus’s mother is developmentally disabled, and his father is deceased. Marcus was placed with his maternal grandmother, and she was appointed his legal guardian in 1985. However, in 1991 the grandmother asked that Marcus be moved out of her home, as Marcus no longer wanted to live with her. Marcus was then removed from his grandmother’s home and placed in long-term foster care. He continued to reside with his foster mother…