M.E.

FACTS

A. Background In November 2021, real party in interest San Mateo County Human Services Agency Children and Family Services (the agency) filed a petition under section 300, subdivisions (b) (failure to protect) and (c) (serious emotional damage), asking the court to assume jurisdiction over the then 13-year-old child. The petition contained the following allegations. Mother’s “ongoing substance abuse and unaddressed mental health issues” jeopardized the child’s safety and placed the child at substantial risk of harm and neglect. Mother had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and polysubstance dependence and had an extensive history of mental health and addiction issues. Since the child’s birth in May 2008, the child had been twice declared a court dependent (May 2008 to April 2010 and April 2015 to October 2016) based on substantiated

All undesignated statutory references are to the Welfare and Institutions Code.

2 allegations of mother’s neglect. Despite three years of reunification and family maintenance services, mother continued to abuse alcohol and drugs. The child reported that mother’s substance use (alcohol and presumed methamphetamine) escalated mother’s…