In re L.H. CA4/2

I. FACTS

In October 2019, the department filed a dependency petition on behalf of mother’s

son L.H., pursuant to section 300, subdivisions (b) and (g). At the detention hearing, the

court asked mother, maternal grandmother, and a maternal great-grandmother about their

potential Indian ancestry, and all three confirmed they had none. Throughout the

dependency, both mother and father maintained they had no Indian ancestry.

In December 2019 the department sent an ICWA-030 form (Judicial Council

Forms, form ICWA-030 (ICWA-030)) to the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Secretary

of the Interior. The ICWA-030 identified Theresa G. as the paternal grandmother.

2 In January 2020, the department interviewed Theresa G., who denied any Indian

ancestry. The interview record correctly identified Theresa G. by her full first and last

name, matching the name of the paternal grandmother on the ICWA-30 form. However,

the interview record incorrectly identified Theresa G. as the maternal grandmother. The

maternal grandmother in fact has a very different name. Later that January, the court

held a jurisdiction and disposition hearing where it sustained an amended petition,

finding L.H.…