In re L.O.

A juvenile wardship petition alleged 17-year-old Minor committed misdemeanor battery against Miguel. Minor had been found to have committed four previous offenses, including felony grand theft and misdemeanor possession of a weapon on school grounds. At a contested jurisdictional hearing, Miguel testified that he was walking home from school when Minor stood in front of him and stating, “I heard you were talking shit.” Miguel denied it. Minor punched Miguel on his face. Miguel told his father that he was tired of being beat up and that “the same guy that beat me up before beat me up this time.” He “didn’t want to be a snitch.” Miguel had a bump on his head and swelling underneath his eye. The juvenile court sustained the petition. Minor was enrolled in high school, and his behavior and attendance had been satisfactory. He was receiving special education services for speech and language deficits. He was attending individual counseling. He denied using alcohol or drugs; tests were negative for drug use. The court continued Minor as a ward of the court and committed him to a residential program followed by supervision and monitoring in the community, and imposed conditions of probation. The court of appeal affirmed, modifying one probation condition that would categorically prohibit Minor from all use of social networking sites, and remanded for the limited purpose of addressing Minor’s educational needs. View "In re L.O." on Justia Law