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Appendix 2140: Guidelines for Decision Making at Intake

CPS 98-6

Abandonment

(A)  the leaving of a child in a situation where the child would be exposed to a substantial risk of physical or mental harm, without arranging for necessary care for the child, and a demonstration of an intent not to return by a parent, guardian, or managing or possessory conservator of the child;

Situational Factors To Consider In Decision Making

  ·  Age of child

  ·  Location of other parent or caretaker

  ·  History/ability of caretaker

  ·  Time lapse since last contact with parent

  ·  Child has a mental, physical or medical disability

Emotional Abuse

(A)  mental or emotional injury to a child that results in an observable and material impairment in the child's growth, development, or psychological functioning;

(B)  causing or permitting the child to be in a situation in which the child sustains a mental or emotional injury that results in an observable and material impairment in the child's growth, development, or psychological functioning;

(I)   the current use by a person of a controlled substance as defied by Chapter 481, Health and Safety Code, in a manner or the extent that the use results in {physical}, mental, or emotional injury to a child;

Situational Factors To Consider In Decision Making

  ·  Rarely occurs in isolation; usually combined with other allegations

  ·  Statement of impact from medical or clinical professional

  ·  Presence of age appropriate reaction of life crisis

  ·  Behavior of parent/caretaker

  ·  Specificity of information provided

  ·  Child's ability to deal with or overcome situation

  ·  Presence or absence of measurable and severe detrimental effects on the child

  ·  Child has a mental, physical or medical disability

Medical Neglect

(ii)  the failure to seek, obtain, or follow through with medical care for the child, with the failure resulting in or presenting a substantial risk of death, disfigurement, or bodily injury or with the failure resulting in an observable and material impairment to the growth, development, or functioning of the child;

Situational Factors To Consider In Decision Making

  ·  Age of child

  ·  Duration of condition

  ·  Severity of condition

  ·  Child's ability to care for self

  ·  Impact of non-treatment

  ·  Knowledge of parent about source and type of treatment needed

  ·  Parents' religious beliefs with regard to intervention

  ·  Statement of need from medical professional

  ·  Child has a mental, physical, or medical disability

Neglectful Supervision

(I)   placing the child in or failing to remove the child from a situation that a reasonable person would realize requires judgment or actions beyond the child's level of maturity, physical condition, or mental abilities and that results in bodily injury or substantial risk of immediate harm to the child;

(B) (iv) placing a child in or failing to remove the child from a situation in which the child would be exposed to a substantial risk of sexual conduct harmful to the child.

Situational Factors To Consider In Decision Making

  ·  Age of child

  ·  Child's emotional state

  ·  Deliberateness of inattention

  ·  Maturity, capability of child

  ·  Overall safety of surrounding

  ·  Frequency or parent's inattention

  ·  Child's ability to respond to crisis

  ·  Number of children left unsupervised

  ·  Accessibility to other responsible adults

  ·  Child's knowledge of parents' whereabouts

  ·  Length of time left alone, unattended

  ·  A bodily injury or substantial risk of immediate harm has already occurred

  ·  Behavior, activity child engages in while unsupervised

  ·  Arrangements parents have made to ensure child's safety during parent's absence

  ·  Child has a mental, physical, or medical disability

Physical Abuse

(C)  physical injury that results in substantial harm to the child, or the genuine threat of substantial harm from physical injury to the child, including an injury that is at variance with the history or explanation given and excluding an accident, or reasonable discipline by a parent, guardian, or managing or possessory conservator that does not expose the child to a substantial risk of harm;

(D)  failure to make a reasonable effort to prevent an action by another person that results in physical injury that results in substantial harm to the child;

(I)   the current use by a person of a controlled substance as defied by Chapter 481, Health and Safety Code, in a manner or the extent that the use results in physical, {mental, or emotional} injury to a child; or

(J)  causing, expressly permitting or encouraging the child to use a controlled substance as defined by Chapter 481, Health and Safety Code.  {Brackets address emotional abuse.}

Situational Factors To Consider In Decision Making

  ·  Age of child

  ·  Type of injury

  ·  Degree of injury

  ·  Location of injury

  ·  Recency of injury

  ·  Access of AP to child

  ·  Explanation of injury

  ·  History of abuse/neglect

  ·  Mental or emotional illness

  ·  Parents sense of remorse

  ·  Likelihood of reoccurrence

  ·  Presence of family violence

  ·  Mental or emotional illness

  ·  Child's ability to protect self

  ·  Circumstances surrounding incident

  ·  Presence and type of substance abuse

  ·  Child has mental, physical, or medical disability

Physical Neglect

(iii) the failure to provide the child with food, clothing, or shelter necessary to sustain the life or health of the child, excluding failure caused primarily by financial inability unless relief services had been offered and refused;

Situational Factors To Consider In Decision Making

  ·  Time of year

  ·  Weather

  ·  Age of child

  ·  Effect on child

  ·  History with CPS

  ·  Child's health

  ·  Resources available to family

  ·  Mental/emotional functioning of parents /child

  ·  Child has a mental, physical, or medical disability

Refusal To Assume Parental Responsibility

(c)  the failure by the person responsible for a child's care, custody, or welfare to permit the child to return to the child's home without arranging for the necessary care for the child after the child has been absent from the home for any reason, including having been in residential placement or having run away.

Situational Factors To Consider In Decision Making

  ·  Circumstances in which child is left

  ·  Child's ability to cope with situation

  ·  Child has a mental, physical, or medical disability

  ·  Confirmation that parents are actually aware of child's needs

  ·  Alternative arrangements for child and what facility has done to explore these arrangements

Sexual Abuse

(E)  sexual conduct harmful to a child's mental, emotional, or physical welfare;

(F)  failure to make a reasonable effort to prevent sexual conduct harmful to a child;

(G)  compelling or encouraging the child to engage in sexual conduct as defined by Section 43.01, Penal Code; or

(H)  causing, permitting, encouraging, engaging in, or allowing the photographing, filming, or depicting of the child if the person knew or should have known that the resulting photograph, film, or depiction of the child is obscene as defined by Section 43.21, Penal Code, or pornographic.

Situational Factors To Consider In Decision Making

  ·  Date of last incident

  ·  Age of children

  ·  AP's access to child

  ·  Child makes an outcry

  ·  Presence of protecting factor

  ·  AP with history of sexual abuse

  ·  Parent with history of sexual victimization

  ·  General dynamics of family dysfunction

  ·  Child's attitude, behavior when with AP

  ·  Child has a mental, physical, or medical disability

  ·  Reporter is a medical professional, law enforcement, former victim, or otherwise has direct knowledge of AP's history of SXAB

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