La. Admin. Code tit. 67 § V-1301

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 9, September 20, 2024

Section V-1301 - Child Protection Investigation Report Acceptance

A. Reports will be assigned for investigation when the circumstances of the report indicate either:

1. a cause to believe by the reporter that substantial risk of harm to the child is present and the child's physical, mental, or emotional health is seriously endangered as a result; or

2. the reporter has cause to believe that abuse or neglect has already occurred.

B. Reports of abuse and/or neglect which provide first hand information of an injury, or of evidence of an injury to a child, such as personal observation of photograph, names of witnesses, medical reports, or police reports, which cause a reporter to believe that a child has been injured or is at substantial risk of injury through the action or inaction of the child's caretaker will be investigated. It is important to understand that in all cases the reported circumstances of the child such as age, health, current condition, and the past history of the family and alleged perpetrator, such as access to the victim, history of violence or neglect, and parental willingness and/or ability to protect the child, could add information that will either establish or weaken the reason to believe that immediate and substantial risk of harm is likely to be present.

C. Response Time. The reports classified as presenting low risk of immediate substantial harm alleged will be assigned a response time of from 24 hours up to five calendar days from the date the report was received.

D. Anonymous Reports

1. Reports of alleged child abuse and neglect will be accepted from anonymous reporters.

2. OCS intake staff shall attempt to obtain the reporter's name and address so that follow up contacts are possible in order to clarify information contained in the report and to improve the assessment of risk to the child. The reporter shall be informed of the confidentiality of the reporter's identity and the legal protection from civil or criminal liability for reporters who report in good faith.

E. Bad Faith Reports

1. At any time when OCS staff has reason to believe that a report of child abuse and/or neglect has been made in bad faith, all available information shall be turned over to the district attorney for review.

2. This action would be taken when there is evidence that the reporter made a report known to be false or with reckless disregard for the truth of the report.

F. Residential Care of Children in State Custody. In order to provide some workload relief for child protection and foster care staff in the Office of Community Services, the positions assigned to the Gary W. Program will be transitioned consistent with the federal court's approval of conclusion of OCS activities in the Gary W. case, into monitoring and strengthening of residential foster care programs to prevent occurrence in Louisiana of abusive or neglectful conditions for foster children which resulted in the Gary W. judgment against the state of Louisiana.

G. Nonreports

1. According to the Guidelines for a Model System of Protective Services established by the National Association of Public Child Welfare Administrators, child protective services is a specialized field of child welfare which is not an appropriate service for all child and family-related problems. These guidelines have been used to assist staff in making a determination of those situations which do not constitute a report of child abuse and/or neglect. Response from the public during the recent hearings indicated that the majority of participants were in concurrence with these decisions.

2. Following is a listing of nonreports of child abuse and/or neglect. Brief explanations are included for clarity. If there is a need for medical, mental health, social, or other services to be provided to the child, his/her family, or the caretaker, appropriate referrals for such services will be made:

a. sexual activity with a sibling or minor perpetrator with no alleged parental/caretaker culpability;

b. sexual enticement/harassment and unspecified sexual abuse without a specific allegation of sexual abuse by caretaker or parent;

c. venereal disease in a child age 13 or older without a specific allegation of sexual abuse by caretaker/parent;

d. abandonment of a teenager whose parents want the agency to take custody due to conflict/behavior and other unspecific family or behavior problem which does not include abuse or neglect;

e. clothing inadequate which does not seriously endanger life or health of the child;

f. dependency due to the substance abuse or mental/physical limitation of a parent which does not incapacitate them from providing minimally acceptable care;

g. drug/alcohol abuse by a teenager with or without parental permission;

h. educational neglect reports shall be referred to the local school board which is charged under Louisiana law with responsibility for enforcing compulsory school attendance;

i. food inadequate when the reporter expresses concern about the family dietary choices which do not seriously endanger the development, health, or life of a child;

j. lack of supervision of a teenager 13 years or older unless mental capacity, physical condition or situational factors indicate serious threat to life or health of the child;

k. medical neglect with no strong likelihood of serious consequences such as failure to provide corrective shoes, glasses, or orthodontia;

l. shelter inadequate which does not seriously endanger the life or health of a child.

H. Reports of abuse/neglect in family day care homes with no allegations of culpability in the abuse/neglect by parents or legal custodians will be assigned a level of risk based on the information provided by the reporter and referred to law enforcement and, when appropriate to the case circumstances, other agencies.

La. Admin. Code tit. 67, § V-1301

Promulgated by the Department of Social Services, Office of Community Services, LR 17:387 (April 1991), repromulgated LR 19:503 (April 1993), amended LR 25:1654 (September 1999), LR 28:102 (January 2002).

AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with the Louisiana Children's Code, Article 612.