Mother’s absence from the dependency jurisdictional hearing on a Welfare and Institutions Code section 300(g) petition because of incarceration did not violate her statutory right to be present under Penal Code section 2625 or under the circumstances result in any prejudicial denial of due process. Penal Code section 2625 states that a petition under Welfare and Institutions Code section 300 (a)(b)(c)(d)(e)(f)(i) or (j) may be adjudicated without the presence of a prisoner without a waiver. Section 300(g), which was alleged here, is specifically not included in the statute. Therefore, appellant had no statutory right to be in court for the allegation to be adjudicated. Further, since appellant had discussed with both the police and DCFS all of the possibilities for custody of the minors during her incarceration, had received all the relevant DCFS reports, and was in contact with her attorney who was present at the hearing, any helpful information regarding the placement of the minors would have been relayed to the court either by DCFS or appellant’s counsel. Therefore, there was no reasonable probability the result would have been any different if appellant had personally attended the hearing, and her absence did not prejudice any constitutional right.
Case Summaries