In re S.J. CA2/1

BACKGROUND

I. DCFS Places S.J. In Foster Care After His Parents’

Domestic Violence Incident DCFS received a referral when S.J. was born in January 2021 because Mother and S.J. tested positive for THC, the active ingredient in marijuana. DCFS closed the referral after Mother agreed to participate in “Prevention and Aftercare” services.

1 Further statutory references are to the Welfare and Institutions Code.

2 2 On March 4, 2021, Mother and T.J. (Father) were arrested for child endangerment after law enforcement responded to a domestic violence incident between them. Mother and Father’s son, one-and-a-half-month-old S.J., was transported to the hospital for a welfare check after officers observed Mother clutching S.J. tightly during the incident, and it appeared to the officers that S.J. might be in distress. At the hospital, S.J. tested positive for cocaine. A DCFS social worker interviewed Mother at the hospital, where Mother was in police custody and awaiting X-ray results regarding potential injuries she suffered during the domestic violence incident. The social worker observed swelling and discoloration around Mother’s left eye. Mother told the social worker she wanted…