Sacramento County Department of Health & Human Services v. Maximillian K.

Appellants, the mother and father of the minors, appeal from the order of the juvenile court terminating their parental rights. (Welf. & Inst. Code, §§ 366.26, 395; further undesignated statutory references are to the Welfare and Institutions Code.) Appellants contend the juvenile court erred when it conducted the section 366.26 hearing without ensuring compliance with the notice provisions of the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA). ( 25 U.S.C. § 1902 et seq.) We affirm the order.

Facts and Procedural History

The Sacramento County Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) filed dependency petitions in October 2001 concerning the newborn minor twins, based on allegations that appellants had committed lewd and lascivious acts on the minors’ six-year-old half sibling and were incarcerated pending trial for these acts. The petitions were subsequently amended to add allegations that another half sibling had also been molested.

The minute order from the detention hearing indicated that the mother “may be of Native American [hjeritage.” ICWA notice was sent to the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA). In a letter accompanying the notice to the BIA, a paralegal with DHHS advised…