In re J.B. CA3

FACTS AND PROCEEDINGS

The Department filed a petition to remove six-week-old J.B. from parental custody in August 2013. The petition alleged mother had a drug problem, had used drugs while pregnant with the minor, failed to comply with informal services and her current whereabouts were unknown. The minor was placed with the maternal grandmother. At the detention hearing on September 4, 2013, the court ordered the minor detained and directed the Department to make a paternity inquiry. The maternal grandmother told the court there was no Indian heritage on the maternal side. The report for the jurisdiction/disposition hearing said the social worker had not had any contact with either parent. However, father appeared at the September 26, 2013, prejurisdiction status conference and informed the court he had both Sioux and Creek ancestry. Father completed the ICWA-020 form regarding his Indian status and asked for a paternity test. At the November 7, 2013, hearing, the court found father to be the minor’s biological father and directed the Department to provide notice to the relevant tribes. The court subsequently entered a judgment of paternity. At the next hearing in November 2013,…