Minors. L. A. Cnty. Dep't of Children & Family Servs. v. Morena H. (In re Luis H.)
Minors. L. A. Cnty. Dep't of Children & Family Servs. v. Morena H. (In re Luis H.)
Opinion of the Court
*1225Minors Luis H. and Alan H. appeal from the dismissal of the dependency petition filed on their behalf pursuant to Welfare and Institutions Code
FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND
Morena H. has four children: Maria E. (born 2002), Leslie O. (born 2008), Luis H. (born 2012), and Alan H. (born 2016). In 2016 the family came to the attention of the Department of Children and Family Services when Leslie O. disclosed to her teacher that her mother's boyfriend and Luis H.'s father, Manuel B., had sexually abused her.
After an investigation also revealed possible physical abuse of Maria E. by Morena H., DCFS filed a petition alleging that the four children came within the jurisdiction of the juvenile court under section 300, subdivisions (a) (serious physical harm); (b) (failure to protect); (d) (sexual abuse); and (j) (abuse of sibling).
The juvenile court conducted a contested jurisdictional hearing. At the close of the hearing, the court dismissed the allegations of serious physical harm as to all children; concluded that Morena H. had failed to protect Leslie O. from being sexually abused by Manuel H.; and sustained the failure to protect and sexual abuse allegations under section 300, subdivisions (b) and (d) as to Leslie O. only. The court did not sustain the subdivision (b), (d), or (j) allegations as to the other three children, saying, "I will not sustain the counts as to the siblings. And the reason is this: I don't have any evidence that there has been any sexual abuse of any of the siblings, including Maria [E.], the other possibly more obvious target. And I don't believe the abuse of Leslie [O.], at least based on the evidence in front of me, reaches the level of egregiousness, for instance, that was mentioned in [ In re I.J . (2013)
The court declared Leslie O. a dependent child of the juvenile court and dismissed the petition as to the other three minors.
DISCUSSION
Luis H. and Alan H. argue that no substantial evidence supports the juvenile court's "finding" that they were not placed *600at a substantial risk of harm by Morena H.'s failure to protect Leslie O. from sexual abuse by Manuel B. and by the abuse itself. Here, the minors are "essentially urging that there was insufficient evidence to support the juvenile court's finding against [their] position because evidence supports [their] position." ( In re I.W. (2009)
We are aware that in In re I.W. , supra , 180 Cal.App.4th at page 1528,
Here, the juvenile court concluded that the evidence presented in support of the dependency petition was insufficient to establish that Luis H. and Alan H. were at *601substantial risk of harm under section 300, subdivisions (b) and (j). Luis H. and Alan H. have argued that the evidence showed that Morena H.'s failure to protect and Manuel B.'s sexual abuse of Leslie O. placed them at substantial risk of harm, but they have not argued or demonstrated that the evidence "was (1) 'uncontradicted and unimpeached' and (2) 'of such a character and weight as to leave no room for a judicial determination that it was insufficient to support a finding.' [Citation.]" ( In re I.W. , supra , 180 Cal.App.4th at p. 1528,
DISPOSITION
The judgment is affirmed.
We concur:
PERLUSS, P. J.
SEGAL, J.
Unless otherwise indicated, all further statutory references are to the Welfare and Institutions Code.
On our own motion, we take judicial notice of minute orders concerning subsequent proceedings in this matter. We understand from these orders that at disposition, the juvenile court ordered Leslie O. placed in the home of her mother, and that the court subsequently terminated dependency jurisdiction over her.
One attorney represented Luis H., Alan H., and Leslie O. Maria E. was represented by separate counsel.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.