Leslie H. v. Superior Court

In Leslie H. v. Superior Court (2014) 224 Cal.App.4th 340, the minor had been brought to the United States by her mother as an infant. The mother, who was "unemployed, irresponsible, and a heavy drinker," did not properly care for the minor. (Leslie H., supra, 224 Cal.App.4th at p. 345.) The minor's father, a drug user, was largely absent, and the minor recalled meeting him only once. (Id. at pp. 345-346.) At one point, the mother took the minor back to Mexico, but the minor called the grandmother complaining about physical abuse and neglect. Thereafter, the mother brought minor back to live with her grandmother in the United States because the grandmother threatened to stop sending money to the mother if the minor was not returned. When the minor returned, she was gaunt, malnourished, suffered nightmares, ate little, cried easily and was afraid to leave the grandmother's side. (Id. at p. 345.)