Filed 3/ 30/21 In re L.L. CA2 /3

NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS

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 This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.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

SECOND APPELLATE DISTRICT

DIVISION THREE

In re L

. L

. et al

. , Person s Coming Under the Ju venile Court Law. B 30 7013

LOS ANGELES COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN AND FAMILY SERVICES,

Plaintiff and Respondent,

v.

E

. L. et al

. ,

Defendant s and Appellant s

. (Los Angeles County Super. Ct. Nos. 20 CCJP0 3062 A, 19CCJP0 3062 B )

APPEAL S from order s of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County, Annabelle G. Cortez , Judge

. Affirmed.
Jill Smith

, under appointment by the Court of Appeal , for Defendant and Appellant E.L. Robert McLaughlin

, under appointment by the Court of Appeal

, for Defendant and Appellant R

. L

.2 Rod rigo A. Castro

- Silva , County Counsel, Kim Nemoy, Assistant County Counsel

, and Jane Kwon , Deputy County
Counsel , for Plaintiff and Respondent.

——————————
E

. L. (mother) and R

. L. (father) appeal from the orders of the juvenile court asserting dependency jurisdiction over t he i r
two daughters, removing the children from father’s custody, and ordering father to complete a drug and alcohol program. We
affirm.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND
The family came t o the attention of the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) in May
2020
, after the parents’ 10

- year

- old daughter

, L.L.

, told law enforcement that father touched her inapprop riately while they were lying o n a bed together. The incident occurred in the family’s home while mother was at work and L.L.’s 22

- month

- old sister

, K.L.

, was asleep in
the back bedroom. L.L. told police and, later, a DCFS social worker, that on the eveni ng of May 18, 2020

, father entered the main bedroom where she was sitting and closed the blinds. L.L. thought father’s behavior was strange

, so she went to the back bedroom to wake up K.L. Father went to the back bedroom, picked L.L. up by the waist, carried her to the main bedroom, sat her on the bed, and told her to stay there. He then moved L.L. to the center of the bed, laid her down, and got on the bed next to her. Father pulled L.L. by the shoulder to face him and began rubbing her thigh. L.L. told a police officer that father wrapped her legs around one of his legs. Father then touched L.L.’s3

buttocks three times ; L.L. said father “grabbed her butt and caressed her thighs” during the inci dent

. L.L. knew the difference between a bad touch and a good touch and stated that it was common for her family to pat each other on the buttocks. However, on this occasion, L.L. was uncomfortable because she thought father was going to “ do something ” when he closed the blinds and mother was not home.
L.L. was scared and felt her heart beat ing faster than usual as she and father were lying on the bed

. When father got up and went into the kitchen, L.L. closed herself in the bathroom. She text messaged her mother , “mami,” about five times . When mother did not respond, L.L. called 911 but was unable to get through. She next sent a message to a friend who called police
for her. Father was arrested for sexual battery pursuant to Penal
Code section 243 .4 , subdivision (e)(1)

. He was released the next day and not charged with a crime. After father returned home the family resumed their normal routines. Father continued to
care for the children alone while mother was not home.
DCFS received a referral on May 19, 2020 , and opened an investigation . Social workers interviewed L.L., mother, and
father on May 21, 2020 , and again in June 2020 . L.L. told a

so cial worker father had touched her in a similar manner by patting her buttocks on two other occasions during an out

- of

- state trip when she was sharing a bed with him . L.L. did not tell anyone about these prior incidents. A fter father’s arrest, L.L.
told mother about the most recent incident . She was sad because mother did not believe her, even though mother had previously told her to speak up if anything ever made her feel
uncomfortable

.4 According to L.L.

, her parents frequently argued

. Sometimes the a rguments became physical and mother and
father push ed each other . L.L. said, “ What I am living is not
safe .” S he once heard mother slap father during an argument. Another time, she heard mother and father arguing about an incident where father threw key s at mother’s stomach, causing mother pain. L.L. stated that f ather usually drank alcohol on
weekends and her parents argue d when father was drinking.
L.L. felt uncomfortable when her father drank because he used

“ bad words ” and talk ed to the family like he was “ crazy .”
Mother told DCFS she was shocked by the sexual abuse allegations and did not believe father was abusing the children

. She confirmed that L.L. had text messaged her multiple times on the day of the incident . She did not respond because she was not allowed to use her cellphone at work. Mother interpreted father’s
conduct toward L.L. as a show of affection, not sexual abuse. However, prior to police and DCFS involvement, mother had considered telling father that they should stop patting each other
on the buttocks because someone could perceive it negatively as L.L. was getting older

. Mother said that L.L. had never appeared
distress ed around father and had a strong bond with him. Mother initially denied any domestic violence, but then
admitted she had once slapped father about two or three years
earlier . Mother claimed the incident with the keys was an accident, stating that father threw the keys , but she f ailed to
catch them and they hit her in the stomach. She denied that s he and father pushed each other. However, she admitted that while the family was living in Guatemala, she and father argue d more , and father drank excess ively

. According to mother, i n Guatemala, the parents argue d two to three times per week,5

usually ove r money, and they call ed each other derogatory names, but never in L.L.’s presence. Mother insisted “ Guatemala is separate .” Still, m other said her recent arguments with father
stemmed from his drinking and she did not like it when father
drank. She re ported that on the weekends, father typically drank
a six

- pack of beer alone in his car. Mother asked father to stop drinking alcohol so that he could spend more time with the family. S he denied that father’s drinking impact ed his parenting
and said she cared for the children when father was drinking

. Father told a social worker that on the day of the May 2020
incident

, L.L. had been watching television and playing on the floor in the back bedroom where K.L. was sleeping. Fa ther was concerned that L.L. was making too much noise and would wake
K.L. so he moved L.L. to the main bedroom. He admitted that he got on the bed next to L.L., kissed her three times on the cheek

, and said, “ I love you daughter .” Father then spanked L. L. three times on her buttocks, with an open hand and over her clothes.
Father confirmed that he and L.L. travelled out

- of

- state together and slept in the same bed throughout the trip. He said that on two separate nights, he hugged L.L. and told her, “ I love

you momma , ” before he spanked her three times, lightly, on her buttocks, over her clothes. Father described his actions as playful and innocent in nature

. He never sensed that L.L. was
uncomfortable. Father had noticed, however, that L.L. was
mood ier lately and appeared self

- conscious that her body was maturing

. Father observed L.L. trying to hi de her developing breasts by hunching her back. Father denied any domestic violence with mother, but admitted the slapping incident had occurred . He a lso said that6

the incident with the car keys was an accident

. Father confirmed that he and mother pushed each other and argue d weekly over

money while the family lived in Guatemala

. According to father,
he and mother yell ed or call ed each other names , bu t if their verbal disagreements escalated, father would leave the home and go for a walk.
DCFS filed a Welfare and Institutions Code 1 section 300 petition on behalf of L.L. and K.L., under subdivisions (a), (b), (d), and (j) , alleging that the children were at serious risk of harm
from the parents’ domestic violence, father’s alcohol abuse, and father’s sexual abuse of L.L . The juvenile court found prima facie
evidence that L .L. and K .L. were persons described by section
300 and detained them f rom father. It released the children to mother and granted father monitored visits. The juvenile court also ordered random alcohol testing for father. 2 At the jurisdictional hearing, the juvenile court admitted DCFS’s combined jurisdiction and disposi tion report, evidence that father arrived for drug testing but could not test because his name was not on the list, and a sign

- in sheet showing father had
attended eight alcoholics anonymous sessions. After hearing argument, the juvenile court sustained a ll counts of the petition

. T he court found the domestic violence was unresolved, recurring,
and not a one

- time incident. The court also found a nexus

1 All further statutory references are to the Welfare and Institutions Code.

2 At some point before the jurisdictional hearing the parents indicated they were willing to participate in a contract for informal supervision, but only if father was allowed to return to the family home.7

between father’s ongoing alcohol consumption and the parents’ domestic violence, noting the parents’ arg uments stemmed from father’s alcohol use , mother became upset when father drank,
and the issue remained unresolved. In sustaining the sexual abuse counts, the juvenile court
noted the record included multiple incidents of a sexual nature.
The court foun d L.L.’s statements to police officers and DCFS
were consistent and she demonstrated fear and discomfort with father’s actions. She tried to awaken K.L. after the incident, texted mother six times, and when mother did not respond, she
told her friend that she was uncomfortable with father’s actions,
and asked the friend to call the police. The juvenile court disagreed with father that his behavior with L.L. was merely a n appropriate display of love and affection. I t also found that the
conduct was escala ting and inferred the requisite intent for sexual abuse from the totality of the circumstances . The court

agree d with the children’s counsel that father’s behavior with the children appeared to constitute grooming for more egregious
sexual behavior

. The juvenile court proceeded to disposition. It f ound clear and convincing evidence that there was a substantial danger and risk of detriment to the children and declared them dependents of
the juvenile court. The court removed the children from father
and released them to mother , finding that it was premature to release the children to father and that a substantial risk of harm
still existed. The juvenile court ordered mother to complete individual counseling to address sexual abuse awareness and appropria te sexual boundaries. It also ordered father to complete a parenting program; individual counseling, including domestic violence for perpetrators and appropriate sexual boundaries; and8

joint counseling with L.L.

, contingent on her therapist’s advice
and recommendations. The juvenile court also ordered father to complete a full drug and alcohol program with aftercare, including testing every other week. Mother and father appealed.

DISCUSSION

I. Mother’s Appeal
Mother’s sole argument on appeal is that substantial evidence did not support the juvenile court’s finding that she failed to protect the children from father’s sexual abuse. She
does not contest the court’s other jurisdictional findings related to
her

, o r those based on father’s conduct. She therefore concedes that the juvenile court will retain jurisdiction regardless of the outcome of her appeal. However, mother urges this court to consider the merits of her appeal. “When a dependency petition alleges multiple grounds for its assertion that a minor comes within the dependency court’s jurisdiction, a reviewing court can affirm the juvenile court’s finding of jurisdiction over the minor if any one of the statutory bases for jurisdiction that are enumerat ed in the petition is supported by substantial evidence. In such a case, the reviewing court need not consider whether any or all of the other alleged statutory grounds for jurisdiction are supported by the evidence. ” ( In re Alexis E. (2009) 171 Cal.App. 4th 438

, 451 .) Nonetheless, a reviewing court may consider the merits of a parent’s challenge when it serves as the basis for dispositional orders that are also challenged on appeal, could be prejudicial to the appellant or could potentially impact the cu rrent or future dependency proceedings, or could have consequences for the parent beyond9

jurisdiction. ( In re Drake M. (2012) 211 Cal.App.4th 754 , 762

– 763.) We exercise our discretion here to consider mother’s appeal. We note that although the juvenile court did not remove the children from mother’s custody, it ordered her to complete individual counseling to address sexual abuse awareness and appropriate sexual boundaries. The juvenile court could have ordered mother to participate in this form of cou nseling based on
the jurisdictional finding that the children were abused or at risk of sexual abuse because of father’s conduct. ( In re Briana V. (2015) 236 Cal.App.4th 297 , 311

– 312 [juvenile court not limited to content of sustained petition when making dispositional orders; there need not be a jurisdictional finding as to the particular parent upon whom the court imposes a dispositional order]; In re I.A. (2011) 201 Cal.App.4th 1484 , 1492.) Yet, this dispositional order may also have flowed from the jurisdictional findings based on mother’s failure to protect the children from father’s sexual abuse. Under these circumstances, t he jurisdictional finding as to mother “ ‘ could potenti ally impact the current or future dependency proceedings. ’ ” ( In re M.W. (2015) 238 Cal.App.4th 1444

, 1452 .) We thus consider mother’s arguments.

A. Substantial evidence supported the juvenile court’s jurisdictional findings as to mother
The juvenile co urt may assume jurisdiction over a child when a child “ has suffered, or there is a substantial risk that the child will suffer, serious physical harm or illness, as a result of the failure or inability of his or her parent or guardian to adequately supervi se or protect the child .” ( § 300, subd. (b)(1) .) The juvenile court may also assume jurisdiction over a child10

when the child has been sexually abused or there is a substantial risk the child will be sexually abused. (§ 300, subd. (d).) This
includes wh en a parent fails to protect a child from sexual abuse and the parent knew or reasonably should have known that the child was in danger of sexual abuse. ( Ibid. )

“ ‘In reviewing the jurisdictional findings and the disposition, we look to see if substanti al evidence, contradicted or uncontradicted, supports them. [Citation.] In making this determination, we draw all reasonable inferences from the evidence to support the findings and orders of the dependency court; we review the record in the light most f avorable to the

court ’ s determinations; and we note that issues of fact and credibility are the province of the trial court .’ ” ( In re R.T. (2017)
3 Cal.5th 622

, 633 .) Here, mother knew that father had inappropriately touched
L.L. after police confronted mother and L.L. told her about the May 2020 incident. Mother acknowledged that even she had begun to feel that father patting L.L. on the buttocks was not appropriate. Nevertheless, mother d id not believe L.L. ’s
disclosures . She repeatedly defend ed father’s actions as playful or innocent displays of affection. A fter father was released from police custody, mother welcomed him back into the home and took no steps to protect the children from him

. Father continued caring for the children alone. Only when DCFS became involved and the juvenile court
ordered the children detained

, and then removed them from
father ’s custody

, did mother agree to measures intended to protect the children from fath er

. Substantial evidence supported

t he juvenile court’s jurisdictional finding that mother failed to protect the children from father’s sexual abuse. (See In re D.G.11

(2012) 208 Cal.App.4th 1562 , 1572

– 1573 [substantial risk of harm established where mother did not believe father sexually abused daughter, mother refused to address allegations until after DCFS detained the children, and mother would not agree not to allow father unmonitored visits]; In re S.C. (2006) 138 Cal.App.4th 396 , 415

– 416 [jurisdiction appropriate where mother did not believe stepfather molested minor and mother allowed stepfather to remain in the home where he could have continued unsupervised access to minor]; In re Katrina W. (19 94) 31 Cal.App.4th 441 , 447 [mother’s past conduct in disbelieving father physically abused minor was evidence of risk of future harm to minor]

. )

II. Father ’s Appeal

Father asserts two arguments on appeal

. 3 First, father
contends the juvenile court’s order removing the children from his custody was not supported by substantial evidence and there

were reasonable means short of removal to protect the children

. Second, father asserts that the disposition order directing him to engage in a full drug and a lcohol program was an abuse of
discretion. We find no error.

3 Father initially also challenged the juvenile court order granting him monitored visitation without specifying the duration and frequency of the visits. On January 27, 2 021 , DCFS requested that we take judicial notice of the juvenile court’s minut e orders entered on January 21, 2021 , granting father a minimum of three visits per week for three hours per visit. The request for judicial notice is granted. In his reply bri ef, father concedes his challenge to the juvenile court’s visitation order is
now moot.12 A. Substantial evidence supported the juvenile court’s
removal order
The juvenile court may remove a child from a parent ’ s custody only upon a finding, by clear and convincing evidence,
that th ere “ is or would be a substantial danger to the physical health, safety, protection, or physical or emotional well

- being of the minor if the minor were returned home, and there are no reasonable means by which the minor ’ s physical health can be protected w ithout removing the minor from the minor ’ s parent [ ] .” ( § 361, subd. (c)(1) .) When we are “ r eviewing a finding that a fact has been proved by clear and convincing evidence, the question before the appellate court is whether the
record as a whole contains substantial evidence from which a reasonable factfinder could have found it highly probable that the
fact was true .” ( Conservatorship of O.B. (2020) 9 Cal.5th 989

, 995

– 99 6 ; see In re V.L. (2020) 54 Cal.App.5th 147, 155 [same standard applies in dependency cases]

. )
Father contends th e evidence was insufficient for removal because his physical confrontatio ns with mother were minor, sporadic, and historical , and neither child was actually harmed or endangered. He minimizes his alcohol consumption and any risk of harm posed by his drinking. Father also asserts that removal was inappropriate because the sexu al abuse of L.L. was relatively minor and did not endanger K.L. He further argues that there

were services available to prevent removal of the children from his custody because he acknowledged his mistakes and communicated his willingness to change

. Fath er’s arguments are unavailing.
T he evidence before the juvenile court established the parents’ domestic violence was recurring

, unresolved, and had13

occurred in L .L.’s presence. L.L. reported that she saw or heard mother slap father only two months prior to DCFS’s involvement. She also stated that father and mother argued a lot and pushed
each other

. That other physical confrontations happened in Guatemala several years earlier

, and that such incidents
continued to occur

, reflected a lo ng history of unresolved domestic violence. When describing the parents’ confrontations, L.L. told the social worker her living situation was not safe. At least some of the parents’ conflict was due to father’s regular drinking, which caused the parents to argue, and led father to curse and

act “ crazy

. ” The juvenile court could reasonably infer that the parents were minimizing the severity of the altercations between
them , and the impact father’s drinking had on the family

. We further disagree with fath er’s characterization of the sexual abuse as relatively minor and thus insufficient to support the removal of both children

. Father had engaged in the same inappropriate behavior with L.L. multiple times . On at least two occasions, he touched L.L.’s butt ocks while lying in bed with her. On both occasions, father acted while he and L.L. were alone. During the May 2020 incident, L.L. became very uncomfortable when, while mother was not home and K.L. was asleep, father
closed the bedroom blinds and placed L.L. on the bed

. Viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the court’s findings, father’s touching o n that occasion was decidedly sexual

. Father placed L.L. on a bed, rubbed her thigh, wrapped her legs around his, and squeezed her buttocks repeatedly. Despite father’s claims that this was normal behavior, L.L. said father’s actions were odd and frightening, leading her to take refuge in a
bathroom wh ere she first texted mother, then confided in a friend who called the police for her

.14 The juvenile court disbelieved father, finding L.L.’s statements consistent and credible. The pattern of incidents supported the juvenile court finding that father’s behavior wa s escalating and could properly be characterized as grooming for
further abuse

. Moreover, the evidence supported an inference that father’s sexualized conduct toward L.L. began with him routinely patting her on the buttocks, that this was couched as a family practice

, and that the practice was likely to include K.L

. On this re cord, a reasonable trier of fact could have found it highly probable that returning the children to father would pose a substantial risk of them being harmed by exposure to future domestic violence, father’s abuse of alcohol, and sexual abuse,
and also tha t there were no reasonable means to protect the children without removal from father’s custody. (§ 361, subd. (c)(1).) “ The parent need not be dangerous and the minor need not have been actually harmed before removal is appropriate. The focus of the sta tute is on averting harm to the
child .” ( In re T.V. (2013) 217 Cal.App.4th 126

, 135

– 136 .) Throughout the case, father minimized his role in the domestic violence, denied that it had occurred, or claimed it was limited to the family’s distant past. Similarly, father minimized the effects his alcohol consumption had on the family and failed to recognize its connection to his confrontations with mother. He also minimized his conduct with L.L., denying its sexual nature and downplaying it as merely acts of affection. Father deni ed negative consequences of his behavior and refus ed to participate in programs such as domestic violence counseling without court
intervention. Despite father’s insistence that he was wil ling to change, he also s tated there was no need to participate in

programs to address domestic violence and sexual abuse before15

ordered to do so

. By the time of the disposition hearing, he had only minimally engaged in services to address any of the case issues. ( In re V.L. , supra, 54 Cal.App. 5th at pp. 157

– 158 [willingness to participate in services is conflicting evidence regarding risk parent posed to children; under substantial evidence test it must be disregarded] .) Accordingly, we find substantial evidence supported the juvenile court’s removal order.

B. The trial court did not abuse its discretion in ordering father to participate in a d rug and alcohol program
Next, father argues that the juvenile court’s order directing him to engage in a full dru g and alcohol treatment program was
an abuse of discretion

. W e disagree. A juvenile court may make any reasonable order “ to ameliorate the conditions that made the child subject to the court’s jurisdiction .” ( In re Neil D. (2007) 155 Cal.App.4th 219

, 224 .) The juvenile court has broad discretion to determine what would serve a child’s interest and to issue dispositional orders accordingly. ( In re Christopher H. (1996) 50 Cal.App.4th 1001

, 1006.) We will not disturb a dis cretionary decision unless it was arbitrary, capricious, or patently absurd. ( In re Raymundo B. (1988) 203 Cal.App.3d 1447 , 1456.) Here, the juvenile court’s order requiring father to participate in a full drug and alcohol treatment program was well
withi n its discretion. Father had a history of alcohol abuse that preceded K.L.’s birth in Guatemala and continued after the family moved to the United States. Although mother claimed father no longer drank to excess, she admitted he regularly
consumed a six

- pack of beer while sitting alone in his car. Father’s alcohol consumption caused arguments between the16

parents , which led to physical confrontations . Prior to DCFS intervention, father made no effort to stop drinking despite mother asking him to stop. A s the juvenile court noted, the drug and alcohol program would teach father how to identify signs of
alcohol abuse and the effects of his drinking on the children and family. Contrary to father’s assertion, random or on

- demand alcohol testing alone would not accomplish those results.
The order for a full drug and alcohol program was within the juvenile court’s broad d iscretion.

DISPOSITION

The orders are affirmed

. NOT TO BE PUBLISHED

.

ADAMS , J. *

We concur:

EDMON , P. J.

EGERTON , J.

* Judge of the Los Angeles County Superior Court, assigned by the Chief Justice pursuant to article VI, section 6 of the California Constitution.