Alameda County Social Services Agency v. Franklin M.

Opinion

SIMONS, J.

In this juvenile dependency case, Franklin M. (Father) failed to appear for several court dates in a multi-day jurisdictional hearing. Dissatisfied with Father’s explanations, the juvenile court in Alameda County imposed an “evidence sanction” barring Father’s testimony, though he had appeared in a timely fashion and was prepared to testify on the date the sanction was imposed. The court then proceeded with the hearing and admitted additional evidence. Several days later, pursuant to section 300 of the Welfare and Institutions Code,1 the court entered an order adjudging…