In re L.C. CA3

BACKGROUND

A detailed recitation of the background of this case is unnecessary given the limited nature of the parents’ claim. The facts and procedure relevant to the sole issue on appeal are as follows. The minors, L.C. (then three years old) and her half sibling T.C. (then five years old), came to the attention of the Sacramento County Department of Child, Family and Adult Services (the Department) after reports that the parents had a history of, and had recently been engaging in, domestic violence in the presence of the minors. The minors were removed from the parents, and the Department filed dependency petitions on behalf of the minors pursuant to section 300, subdivision (b). The juvenile court ordered the minors detained and that they remain placed in the home of the maternal cousin and her husband, where they had been staying pending the jurisdiction/disposition hearing. The court found Man.C. to be the presumed father of L.C., and also found that R.M. “may be the adjudicated father” of T.C. Mother and Man.C. denied any Indian heritage with respect to L.C. and the court found L.C. was not an Indian child for purposes of the Indian Child Welfare Act (the ICWA) (25 U.S.C. §…