In re David G. CA4/3
This is the second appeal by David G. (David Sr.) regarding his son, also called David (David Jr.). David Jr. was detained in February 2015 at age 16 months after his mother, Ciera S., who was heavily into drugs, fed him a marijuana brownie to make him stop fussing. The dependency process dragged on far beyond the prescribed time for a child of David Jr.’s age, and, despite the recommendation of Orange County Social Services Agency (SSA) that David Jr. live with his father, Ciera regained custody of David Jr. in October 2016, under a family maintenance program.
David Sr. appealed the custody order, and we very reluctantly affirmed, in a two-to-one decision. Although the entire panel agreed the case had been mishandled to David Sr.’s detriment, the majority concluded the applicable standards of review – substantial evidence and abuse of discretion – militated against second-guessing the juvenile court’s decision.
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