In re I.F.

I. BACKGROUND

I.F.’s Initial Petition In December 2019, the Santa Clara County Department of Family and Children’s Services (the Department) filed a dependency petition under Welfare and Institutions Code section 300 (undesignated statutory references are to this code) on behalf of three- year-old I.F., alleging the child came within the jurisdiction of the juvenile court due to his mother’s incarceration and substance abuse. The social worker spoke with I.F.’s maternal grandparents when I.F. was in protective custody. The grandfather reported that the maternal great-grandfather (his father) was from Minnesota and may have Native American ancestry. (The maternal grandmother reported having no Native American ancestry.) The social worker indicated on the initial hearing report that there was “reason to believe that [I.F.] is or may be an Indian child.” Mother filed an ICWA-020 Parental Notification of Indian Status form on which she checked the box stating she “may have Indian ancestry.” She told the court at the initial hearing that she “might” have Native American ancestry on her grandfather’s side, but she was unaware of any tribal affiliation or membership. The court found…