June 5, 2026
Court of Appeal of the State of California, Fourth Appellate District, Division Two
The Rule of In re A.T. et al. is that juvenile courts may not assert jurisdiction under section 300(e) over a child who is over five years old at the time of the jurisdictional hearing, under circumstances where the child suffered severe physical abuse before turning five but had reached age five or older by the time of the hearing.
June 1, 2026
Supreme Court of California
The Rule of People v. Barrera is that evidence of prolonged physical abuse, deliberate starvation, isolation, and refusal to seek medical care can support convictions for first degree murder by torture and premeditated/deliberate murder of children, under circumstances involving systematic abuse causing multiple injuries over time combined with fatal acts against severely weakened victims.
March 26, 2026
Court of Appeal of the State of California, Fifth Appellate District
The Rule of In re Bergstrom is that Penal Code section 292 validly implements California Constitution article I, section 12's bail exception by defining specified sexual offenses against children as involving acts of violence and great bodily harm, under circumstances where the constitutional provision does not itself define these terms and the Legislature has authority to implement this constitutional bail exception.