In re Zachary G

In In re Zachary G. (1999) 77 Cal.App.4th 799, the juvenile court terminated reunification services and set a .26 hearing. (Zachary G., supra, at p. 804.) The mother filed a section 388 petition seeking return of the minor to her custody. She alleged she had been visiting the minor regularly and had been attending therapy sessions. Mother's therapist noted mother had "shown sustained progress . . . had good parenting skills, and was fully capable of adequately caring for and safeguarding the minor were he returned to her care." (Id. at p. 805.) The juvenile court denied the petition without a hearing, concluding the petition did not make a prima facie showing that returning the minor to the mother's care was in the minor's best interests. (Ibid.) The appellate court affirmed the summary denial of the petition. The court concluded the petition did not provide any "independent evidence" from the mother's therapist or any other expert showing: (1) the mother was immediately ready to take custody of the minor on a permanent basis; and (2) it was in the minor's best interests to be "deprived of the stability of a permanent home, in order to be returned to a parent who remained a risk (based on her psychological profile as well as her historical patterns) to again regress by returning to an abusive partner." (Zachary G., supra, 77 Cal.App.4th at p. 808.)