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S. B. No. 66 As IntroducedAs Introduced
125th General Assembly | Regular Session | 2003-2004 |
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Senators Schuring, Stivers, Jacobson, Dann, Fedor, Miller, Brady
A BILL
To amend section 2151.421 and to enact sections 2151.425, 2151.426, 2151.427, and 2151.428 of the Revised Code to permit counties to establish Children's Advocacy Centers to review and assess, and to assist public children services agencies with, investigations of reports of child sexual abuse or severe physical abuse of a child.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section 1. That section 2151.421 be amended and sections 2151.425, 2151.426, 2151.427, and 2151.428 of the Revised Code be enacted to read as follows:
Sec. 2151.421. (A)(1)(a) No person described in division
(A)(1)(b) of this section who is acting in an
official or
professional capacity and knows or suspects that a child under
eighteen years of age or a mentally
retarded, developmentally
disabled, or physically impaired child under
twenty-one years of
age has suffered or faces a
threat of suffering any physical or
mental wound, injury,
disability, or condition of a nature that
reasonably indicates
abuse or neglect of the child, shall fail to
immediately report
that knowledge or suspicion
to the entity or
persons specified in this division. Except as provided in section
5120.173 of the Revised Code, the person making the report shall
make it to the public
children services agency or a municipal or
county peace officer in
the county in which the child resides or
in which the abuse or
neglect is occurring or has occurred.
In the
circumstances described in section 5120.173 of the Revised Code,
the person making the report shall make it to the entity specified
in that section. (b) Division (A)(1)(a)
of this section applies to any person
who is an attorney;
physician, including a hospital intern or
resident; dentist;
podiatrist; practitioner of a limited branch of
medicine
as specified in section 4731.15 of the Revised
Code;
registered nurse;
licensed practical nurse; visiting nurse; other
health care
professional; licensed psychologist; licensed school
psychologist; independent marriage and family therapist or marriage and family therapist; speech pathologist or audiologist; coroner;
administrator or employee of a child day-care center;
administrator or
employee of a residential camp or child day camp;
administrator or employee of a certified child care agency or
other public or private children services agency; school
teacher;
school employee; school authority; person engaged in
social work
or the practice of professional counseling; agent of a county humane society; or a
person rendering
spiritual treatment through prayer in
accordance with the tenets
of a well-recognized religion.
(2) An attorney or a physician is not required to make a
report
pursuant
to division (A)(1) of this section concerning any
communication
the attorney or physician
receives from a
client or
patient in an attorney-client or physician-patient
relationship,
if, in accordance with division (A) or (B)
of section
2317.02 of
the Revised Code, the attorney or physician could not
testify with
respect to that communication in a civil or criminal proceeding,
except that the client or patient is deemed to have waived any
testimonial
privilege under division (A) or (B) of section 2317.02
of the
Revised
Code with respect to that communication and the
attorney or physician
shall
make a report pursuant to division
(A)(1) of this section with
respect to that communication, if all
of the following apply: (a) The client or patient, at the time of the communication,
is
either a child under eighteen years of age or a
mentally
retarded, developmentally disabled, or
physically impaired person
under twenty-one
years of age. (b) The attorney or physician knows or suspects, as a result
of the
communication or any observations made during that
communication,
that the client or patient has suffered or faces a
threat of suffering
any
physical or mental wound, injury,
disability, or condition of a
nature that reasonably indicates
abuse or neglect of the client or
patient. (c) The attorney-client or physician-patient relationship
does not
arise out of
the client's or patient's attempt to have an
abortion without the
notification
of her parents, guardian, or
custodian in accordance with section
2151.85 of the Revised Code. (B)
Anyone,
who knows or suspects that a child under
eighteen
years of age or
a mentally
retarded, developmentally disabled, or
physically
impaired person
under twenty-one years of age has
suffered or
faces a
threat of suffering any physical or mental
wound, injury,
disability, or other condition of a nature that
reasonably
indicates abuse or neglect of the child may report or
cause
reports to be made of that knowledge or suspicion
to the
entity or persons specified in this division. Except as provided
in section 5120.173 of the Revised Code, a person making a report
or causing a report to be made under this division shall make it
or cause it to be made to the public
children services agency or
to a municipal
or
county peace
officer.
In the circumstances
described in section 5120.173 of the Revised Code, a person making
a report or causing a report to be made under this division shall
make it or cause it to be made to the entity specified in that
section. (C) Any report made pursuant to division (A) or (B) of
this
section shall be made forthwith either by telephone or in person
and shall be followed by a written report, if requested
by the
receiving agency or officer. The written report shall
contain: (1) The names and addresses of the child and the child's
parents
or the person or persons having custody of the child, if
known; (2) The child's age and the nature and extent of the
child's
known or suspected injuries, abuse, or neglect or of the
known or
suspected threat of injury, abuse, or neglect, including
any
evidence of previous injuries, abuse, or neglect; (3) Any other information that might be helpful in
establishing the cause of the known or suspected injury, abuse,
or
neglect or of the known or suspected threat of injury, abuse,
or
neglect. Any person, who is required by division (A) of this section
to report known or suspected child abuse or child neglect, may
take or cause to be taken color photographs of areas of trauma
visible on a child and, if medically indicated, cause to be
performed radiological examinations of the child. (D)(1)
As used in this division, "children's advocacy center," "severe physical abuse of a child," and "sexual abuse of a child" have the same meanings as in section 2151.425 of the Revised Code. (1) When a municipal or county peace
officer receives a report concerning the possible
abuse or neglect
of a child or the possible threat of abuse or
neglect of a child,
upon receipt of the report, the municipal or county peace officer
who
receives the report shall refer the report to the appropriate
public children services
agency. (2)
When a public children services agency
receives a report pursuant to this
division or
division (A) or
(B)
of this section,
upon receipt of the report, the public
children
services
agency shall comply do both of the following: (a) Comply with section 2151.422 of
the Revised
Code; (b) If the report alleges severe physical abuse of a child or sexual abuse of a child and the county served by the agency is also served by a children's advocacy center, refer the report to the center. (E) No township, municipal, or county peace officer shall
remove a child
about whom a report is made pursuant to this
section from the child's parents,
stepparents, or guardian or any
other persons having custody of the child
without consultation
with the
public children services agency, unless,
in
the judgment
of the officer, and, if the
report was made by physician, the
physician,
immediate removal is considered essential to protect
the child
from further abuse or neglect.
The agency that
must be
consulted shall be the agency conducting the
investigation of the
report as determined pursuant to section
2151.422 of the Revised
Code. (F)(1) Except as
provided in section sections 2151.422 and 2151.428 of the Revised
Code, the public
children
services agency shall investigate,
within twenty-four
hours, each
report of known or suspected child
abuse or child neglect and of
a known or suspected threat of child
abuse or child neglect that
is referred to it under this section
to determine the
circumstances surrounding the injuries, abuse, or
neglect or the
threat of injury, abuse, or neglect, the cause of
the injuries,
abuse, neglect, or threat, and the person or persons
responsible.
The investigation shall be made in cooperation with
the law
enforcement agency and in accordance with the memorandum
of understanding
prepared under
division (J) of this section. A
failure to make the investigation in accordance with the
memorandum is
not grounds for, and shall not result in,
the
dismissal of any charges or complaint arising from the report or
the suppression of any evidence obtained as a result of the
report
and does not give, and shall not be construed as giving,
any
rights or any grounds for appeal or post-conviction relief to
any
person. The public
children
services agency shall report each
case to a central
registry which
the department of job and family
services
shall maintain in order to
determine whether prior
reports have been made in other counties
concerning the child or
other principals in the case. The
public children services agency
shall submit a report of its
investigation,
in writing, to the law
enforcement agency. (2) The public children
services agency shall make any
recommendations to the
county
prosecuting attorney or city
director of law that it considers
necessary to protect any
children that are brought to its
attention. (G)(1)(a) Except as provided in division (H)(3) of this
section, anyone or any hospital, institution, school, health
department, or agency participating in the making of reports
under
division (A) of this section, anyone or any hospital,
institution,
school, health department, or agency participating
in good faith
in the making of reports under division (B) of this
section, and
anyone participating in good faith in a judicial
proceeding
resulting from the reports, shall be immune from any
civil or
criminal liability for injury, death, or loss to person
or
property that otherwise might be incurred or imposed as a
result
of the making of the reports or the participation in the
judicial
proceeding. (b) Notwithstanding section 4731.22 of the
Revised Code, the
physician-patient privilege shall not be a
ground for excluding
evidence regarding a child's injuries,
abuse, or neglect, or the
cause of the injuries, abuse, or
neglect in any judicial
proceeding resulting from a report
submitted pursuant to this
section. (2) In any civil or criminal action or proceeding in which
it is alleged and proved that participation in the making of a
report under this section was not in good faith or participation
in a judicial proceeding resulting from a report made under this
section was not in good faith, the court shall award the
prevailing party reasonable attorney's fees and costs and, if a
civil action or proceeding is voluntarily dismissed, may award
reasonable attorney's fees and costs to the party against whom
the
civil action or proceeding is brought. (H)(1) Except as provided in divisions (H)(4),
(M), and (N)
of this
section, a report made under this section is confidential.
The information provided in a report made pursuant to this
section
and the name of the person who made the report shall not
be
released for use, and shall not be used, as evidence in any
civil
action or proceeding brought against the person who made
the
report. In a criminal proceeding, the report is admissible
in
evidence in accordance with the Rules of Evidence and is
subject
to discovery in accordance with the Rules of Criminal
Procedure. (2) No person shall permit or encourage the unauthorized
dissemination of the contents of any report made under this
section. (3) A person who knowingly makes or causes another person
to
make a false report under division (B) of this section that
alleges that any person has committed an act or omission that
resulted in a child being an abused child or a neglected child is
guilty of a violation of section 2921.14 of the Revised Code. (4) If a report is made pursuant to division (A) or
(B) of
this section and the child who is the subject of the report
dies
for any reason at any time after the report is made, but before
the child
attains eighteen years of age, the public
children
services agency, child advocacy center, or municipal or county peace officer to which the
report was made or referred, on the request of the child fatality
review
board,
shall submit a summary sheet of information
providing a summary of the
report to the review board of the
county in which the deceased
child resided at the time of death.
On the request of the review
board, the agency, center, or peace officer
may, at its discretion, make
the report available to the review
board. (5) A public children services agency shall advise
a person
alleged to have inflicted abuse or neglect on a child
who is the
subject of a report made pursuant to this section, including a report referred to a children's advocacy center under this section, in writing
of
the
disposition of the investigation. The agency shall not
provide to the person
any information that identifies the
person
who made the report, statements of witnesses, or police or other
investigative reports. (I) Any report that is required by this section, other than
a report that is made to the state highway patrol as described in
section 5120.173 of the Revised Code, shall
result
in protective
services and emergency supportive services
being
made available by
the public children services
agency on behalf of
the children
about whom
the report is made, in an effort to
prevent further
neglect or
abuse, to enhance their welfare, and,
whenever
possible, to
preserve the family unit intact.
The agency
required
to provide the services shall be the agency conducting
the
investigation of the report pursuant to section 2151.422 of
the
Revised
Code. (J)(1) Each public children services agency shall prepare
a
memorandum of understanding that is signed by all of the
following: (a) If there is
only one juvenile judge in the county, the
juvenile judge of the
county or the juvenile judge's
representative; (b) If there is more than
one juvenile
judge in the county,
a juvenile judge or the
juvenile judges' representative selected
by the juvenile judges
or, if they are unable to do so for any
reason, the juvenile judge who is
senior in point of
service or
the senior juvenile judge's representative; (c) The county
peace officer; (d) All
chief municipal peace officers within the county; (e) Other law enforcement officers handling child abuse and
neglect cases in the county; (f) The prosecuting
attorney of the county; (g) If the public children services agency is not the county
department of
job and family services, the county department of
job and family services; (h) The county humane society; (i) If a public children services agency participated in the execution of a memorandum of understanding under section 2151.426 of the Revised Code, each participating member of the children's advocacy center established by the memorandum.
(2) A memorandum of understanding shall set forth the normal
operating procedure to be employed by
all concerned officials in
the execution of their respective
responsibilities under this
section and division (C) of section
2919.21, division (B)(1) of
section 2919.22, division (B) of
section 2919.23, and section
2919.24 of the Revised Code and
shall have as two of its primary
goals the elimination of all
unnecessary interviews of children
who are the subject of reports
made pursuant to division (A) or
(B) of this section and, when
feasible, providing for only one
interview of a child who is the
subject of any report made
pursuant to division (A) or (B) of
this section. A failure to
follow the procedure set forth in the
memorandum by
the concerned
officials is not grounds for, and shall not result in, the
dismissal of any charges or complaint arising from any reported
case of abuse or neglect or the suppression of any evidence
obtained as a result of any reported child abuse or child neglect
and does not give, and shall not be construed as giving, any
rights or any grounds for appeal or post-conviction relief to any
person.
(3) A memorandum of understanding shall include all of the
following: (a) The roles
and responsibilities for handling emergency
and
nonemergency cases of abuse and neglect; (b) Standards and procedures to be used in handling and
coordinating investigations of reported cases of child abuse and
reported cases of child neglect, methods to be used in
interviewing the child who is the subject of the report and who
allegedly was abused or neglected, and standards and procedures
addressing the categories of persons who may interview the child
who is the subject of the report and who allegedly was abused or
neglected.
(4) If a public children services agency participated in the execution of a memorandum of understanding under section 2151.426 of the Revised Code, the agency shall incorporate the contents of that memorandum in the memorandum prepared pursuant to this section. (K)(1) Except as provided in division
(K)(4) of this
section, a person who is required to make
a report pursuant to
division (A) of this section may
make a reasonable number of
requests of the public children services
agency or children's advocacy center that receives or
is
referred the report to be provided with
the following
information: (a) Whether the agency or center has initiated an
investigation of the
report; (b) Whether the agency or center is continuing to
investigate the
report; (c) Whether the agency or center is otherwise
involved
with the child
who is the subject of the report; (d) The general status of the health and safety of the
child
who is the subject of the report; (e) Whether the report has resulted in the filing of a
complaint in juvenile court or of criminal charges in another
court. (2) A person may request the information specified in
division (K)(1) of this
section only if, at the time the report is
made, the person's name, address,
and telephone number are
provided to the person who receives the report. When a municipal or county peace officer or employee of a
public children services
agency
receives a report pursuant to
division (A) or
(B) of this section the recipient of the report
shall inform the person of the
right to request the
information
described in division (K)(1) of this section. The recipient of
the report shall include in the initial child abuse or child
neglect
report that the person making the report was so informed
and, if
provided at the time of the making of the report, shall
include
the person's name, address, and telephone number in the
report. Each request is subject to verification of the identity of
the person making
the
report. If that person's
identity is
verified, the agency shall
provide the person with
the information
described in division (K)(1) of this section
a reasonable number
of times, except that the agency shall not disclose
any
confidential information
regarding the child who is the subject of
the report other than
the information described in those
divisions. (3) A request made pursuant to division (K)(1) of this
section is not a
substitute for any report required to be made
pursuant to division (A) of this
section. (4) If an agency other than the agency that
received or was
referred the report is conducting the
investigation of the report
pursuant to section 2151.422 of the
Revised
Code, the agency
conducting the
investigation shall comply with the requirements of
division
(K) of this section. (L) The director of job and
family services shall
adopt
rules in accordance
with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code to
implement this section. The department of job and family services
may
enter into a
plan of cooperation with
any other governmental
entity to aid in ensuring that children
are protected from abuse
and neglect. The department shall make
recommendations to the
attorney general that the department
determines are necessary to
protect children from child abuse and
child neglect. (M) No later than the end of the day
following the day on
which a public children services agency
receives a report of
alleged child abuse or child
neglect, or a report of an alleged
threat of child abuse or child
neglect, that allegedly occurred in
or involved an out-of-home
care entity, the agency shall provide
written notice
of the allegations contained in and the person
named as the alleged
perpetrator in the report to the
administrator, director, or other chief
administrative officer of
the out-of-home care entity that is the
subject of the report
unless the administrator, director, or
other chief administrative
officer is named as an alleged
perpetrator in the report. If the
administrator, director, or
other chief administrative officer of
an out-of-home care entity
is named as an alleged perpetrator in a
report of alleged child
abuse or child neglect, or a report of an
alleged threat of child
abuse or child neglect, that allegedly
occurred in or involved
the out-of-home care entity, the agency
shall provide the written notice
to
the owner or governing board
of the out-of-home care entity that
is the subject of the report.
The agency
shall not provide
witness statements or police or other
investigative reports. (N) No later than three days after the day on
which a public
children services agency that
conducted the investigation as
determined pursuant to section 2151.422
of the Revised Code makes
a
disposition of an investigation involving a report of alleged
child abuse or child neglect, or a report of an alleged threat of
child abuse or child neglect, that allegedly occurred in or
involved an out-of-home care entity, the
agency
shall send written
notice of the disposition of the
investigation to the
administrator, director, or other chief
administrative officer and
the owner or governing board of the
out-of-home care entity. The
agency shall
not provide witness
statements or police or other
investigative reports.
Sec. 2151.425. As used in sections 2151.426 to 2151.428 of the Revised Code: (A) "Children's advocacy center" means a center operated by participating entities within a county or two or more contiguous counties to receive, investigate, and provide victim services to children who are the subjects of reports of alleged severe physical abuse and alleged sexual abuse.
(B) "Severe physical abuse of a child" means any of the following committed against a person under eighteen years of age or a mentally retarded, developmentally disabled, or physically impaired person under twenty-one years of age:
(1) Any action that causes a mental illness or condition of such gravity as would normally require hospitalization or prolonged psychiatric treatment; (2) Any physical harm that carries a substantial risk of death; (3) Any physical harm that involves some permanent incapacity, whether partial or total, or involves some temporary, substantial incapacity; (4) Any physical harm that involves some permanent disfigurement or some temporary, serious disfigurement; (5) Any physical harm that involves acute pain of such duration as to result in substantial suffering or involves any degree of prolonged or intractable pain.
(C) "Sexual abuse of a child" means unlawful sexual conduct or sexual contact, as those terms are defined in section 2907.01 of the Revised Code, with a person under eighteen years of age or a mentally retarded, developmentally disabled, or physically impaired person under twenty-one years of age.
Sec. 2151.426. (A)(1) A children's advocacy center may be established to serve a single county by execution of a memorandum of understanding regarding their participation in the operation of the center by the following entities in the county to be served by the center:
(a) The public children services agency;
(b) Representatives of county and municipal law enforcement agencies serving the county that investigate severe physical abuse of children and sexual abuse of children;
(c) The county prosecuting attorney or a city attorney who prosecutes severe physical abuse of children and sexual abuse of children in the area to be served by the center; (d) Any other entity considered appropriate by all of the other entities executing the memorandum. (2) A center may be established to serve two or more contiguous counties if a memorandum of understanding regarding their participation in the operation of the center is executed by the entities described in division (A)(1) of this section in each county to be served by the center.
(B) Each entity that participates in the execution of a memorandum of understanding under this section shall cooperate in all of the following:
(1) Developing a multidisciplinary team pursuant to section 2151.427 of the Revised Code to investigate reports of alleged severe physical abuse of a child and reports of alleged sexual abuse of a child;
(2) Participating in the operation of the center in compliance with standards for full membership established by the national children's alliance;
(3) Employing the center's staff. (C) A center shall do both of the following:
(1) Operate in accordance with sections 2151.427 and 2151.428 of the Revised Code and the standards for full membership established by the national children's alliance;
(2) Register annually with the attorney general.
Sec. 2151.427. (A) The entities that participate in a memorandum of understanding executed under section 2151.426 of the Revised Code shall assemble the children's advocacy center's multidisciplinary team.
(B)(1) The multidisciplinary team for a single county center shall consist of the following members who serve the county:
(a) A law enforcement officer;
(b) The executive director of the public children services agency or a designee of the executive director;
(c) A county prosecuting attorney or prosecuting attorney's designee;
(d) A mental health professional;
(e) A medical health professional;
(g) A center staff member; (h) Any other person considered appropriate by all of the entities that executed the memorandum.
(2) If the center serves two or more contiguous counties, the multidisciplinary team shall consist of the members described in division (B)(1) of this section from each county to be served by the center.
(C) The multidisciplinary team shall do all of the following:
(1) Receive reports of alleged severe physical abuse of children and alleged sexual abuse of children referred by a public children services agency under section 2151.421 of the Revised Code;
(2) Investigate and provide victim services for each case considered by the team;
(3) Review new and pending cases of severe physical abuse of a child and sexual abuse of a child it receives from public children services agencies;
(4) Provide a report of each case it receives to the central registry maintained by the department of job and family services pursuant to section 2151.421 of the Revised Code.
Sec. 2151.428. (A) A children's advocacy center's multidisciplinary team, with the assistance of the agency, shall investigate within twenty-four hours each report referred to it by a public children services agency to determine the circumstances surrounding the injuries or abuse, the cause of the injuries or abuse, and the person or persons responsible. The investigation shall be made in cooperation with each member of the multidisciplinary team and in accordance with the memorandum of understanding executed under section 2151.426 of the Revised Code. A failure to make the investigation in accordance with the memorandum is not grounds for, and shall not result in, the dismissal of any charges or complaint arising from the report or the suppression of any evidence obtained as a result of the report and does not give, and shall not be construed as giving, any rights or grounds for appeal or post-conviction relief to any person. (B) The multidisciplinary team shall submit a written report of its investigation to the law enforcement agency with jurisdiction over the case.
(C) Nothing in this section, section 2151.421, or sections 2151.425 to 2151.427 of the Revised Code pertaining to the operation of a children's advocacy center shall relieve any public official or agency from any legal obligation or responsibility.
Section 2. That existing section 2151.421 of the Revised Code is hereby repealed.
Section 3. Section 2151.421 of the Revised Code is presented in
this act as a composite of the section as amended by Am. Sub. H.B. 374, Sub. H.B. 510, and Am. Sub. S.B. 221 all of
the 124th General Assembly. The General Assembly, applying the
principle stated in division (B) of section 1.52 of the Revised
Code that amendments are to be harmonized if reasonably capable of
simultaneous operation, finds that the composite is the resulting
version of the section in effect prior to the effective date of
the section as presented in this act.
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