In re Jesse B. CA3

── In re Jesse B. CA3 ── Court: California Court of Appeal Date: June 08, 2026 Category: General Filed 6/8/26 In re Jesse B. CA3 NOT TO BE PUBLISHED California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or ordered published, except as specified by rule 8.1115(b). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115. IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA THIRD APPELLATE DISTRICT (San Joaquin) In re JESSE B., a Person Coming Under the Juvenile C104927 Court Law. (Super. Ct. No. STK-JD-DP- SAN JOAQUIN COUNTY HUMAN SERVICES 2023-0000252) AGENCY, Plaintiff and Respondent, v. C.B., Defendant and Appellant. Mother appeals the juvenile court’s orders terminating her parental rights and freeing the minor Jesse B. (Jesse) for adoption (Welf. & Inst. Code, § 366.26; statutory section citations that follow are to the Welfare and Institutions Code.) She contends the juvenile court erred in: (1) denying her request to change Jesse’s placement; (2) terminating her parental rights despite her request to apply the beneficial parent-child relationship exception to the preference for adoption; and (3) failing inquire as to possible Apache heritage in violation of the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) (25 U.S.C. § 1901 et. seq.). We issued an order for supplemental briefing asking the parties to address whether substantial evidence supported the juvenile court’s ICWA determination in light of the failure of the San Joaquin Human Services Agency (Agency) to provide additional information to the Cherokee Nation as requested by that tribe. Having reviewed that 1 briefing, we now conditionally reverse the matter and remand for the limited purpose of compliance with the ICWA. We otherwise affirm the trial court’s orders. FACTS AND HISTORY OF THE PROCEEDINGS The Case Initiation and Reunification Proceedings In July 2023, a mandated reporter contacted the Agency because of mother’s threats to drown, murder, and/or throw newborn Jesse (26 days old) against a wall. Jesse’s 12-year-old brother A.W. took him to another room to keep him safe, and an officer placed mother on a section 5150 hold given her two prior strike convictions. Jesse’s father, J.B., was soon to be released from prison and controlled mother and A.W.’s behavior. A protective custody warrant issued, and the paternal grandmother, A.B., expressed an interest in taking custody of the children. In the interim, A.W. tried to run away from the emergency shelter with Jesse, and as a result, they had to be placed separately. The initial dependency petition alleged Jesse and A.W. were dependents according to section 300 subdivisions (b), (g), and (j). Mother failed to appear for the initial detention hearing, the children were detained, and supervised visits with mother authorized. Mother had her first supervised visit on July 24, 2023. Thereafter, mother’s visits vacillated between in-person and virtual between August 2023 and November 2023. Jesse was placed with the paternal grandmother in October 2023. In November 2023, mother submitted on jurisdiction and disposition, the children were adjudged dependents, and mother granted reunification services. The Agency’s second amended dependency petition filed a few weeks thereafter continued to allege the children were dependents pursuant to section 300 subdivisions (b), (g), and (j). From November 2023 to March 2024, mother’s visits vacillated between in-person and virtual due to physical incidents with father and mother’s prioritization of her delivery job.