§ 930.51. Law Enforcement.

(a) Investigate - Law enforcement shall investigate the following types of abuse:

(1) Serious Abuse - Law enforcement shall have the primary responsibility for conducting criminal investigations of serious abuse.

(2) General Neglect - Law enforcement shall have the primary responsibility in exempt facilities for conducting and initial assessment of the allegations of neglect, and shall determine whether the alleged abuse is severe or general neglect. If it is determined that the alleged abuse is neglect, law enforcement shall notify the proper authority with supervisorial authority over the exempt facility.

(b) Law enforcement shall ensure the immediate safety of the child by taking the following action:

(1) Preliminary Assessment - Law enforcement shall conduct a preliminary assessment of the risk to the children involved.

(2) Safety Measures - Upon receipt of a report of suspected serious abuse, the investigating law enforcement officer shall take immediate measures as needed to protect the safety of the alleged child-victim and all other children in the facility.

(3) Removal of the Child - Whenever the child's condition or surroundings reasonably appear to be such as to jeopardize the child's welfare, the investigating law enforcement officer shall remove the child and any other child whose welfare reasonably appears to be threatened. When a child is removed, notice of the removal shall be given to the child care provider in charge, prior to or immediately after removal.

(A) Residential Facility or Hospital - If the facility is a residential facility or hospital, the officer shall remove the child and transport him/her to temporary custody.

(B) Child Day Care Facility - If the facility is a child day care facility, the officer shall obtain a parent/guardian roster from the facility, as provided by Health & Safety Code section 1596.876, or from licensing officials, and shall notify and advise the parent/guardian to remove his/her child from the facility. If the parent/guardian is not available and the child is in immediate danger, the officer shall remove and transport the child to temporary custody and notify the parent/guardian.

(4) Removal of the Suspect

(A) If probable cause to arrest exists, the suspect shall be taken into custody where appropriate.

(B) If probable cause to arrest does not exist and the adult suspected of child abuse is not a resident of the out-of-home care facility, the investigator shall, in the exercise of his/her discretion, request that the adult suspect leave the out-of-home care facility voluntarily until the investigation is completed. In the case of a family day care home or foster family home, where the suspect is a resident, safety measures shall be taken to ensure protection of the children in the facility. The investigator shall also have discretion to remove from the out-of-home care facility any child suspected of child abuse. Removal of the child suspect shall be accomplished by the law enforcement officer, the child placement agency, court order, or in cooperation with that child's parent or guardian, whichever is appropriate.

(c) Coordinate - Law enforcement shall coordinate the investigation as follows:

(1) Joint investigations - The investigating law enforcement officer shall consider a joint investigation and coordinate the criminal investigation and response with the licensing and child welfare agencies to the extent possible, and without compromising the security and confidentiality of the case.

(2) Joint interviews - The investigating law enforcement officer shall coordinate with the other agencies involved in the investigation to minimize the number of interviews with the child abuse victims and witnesses.

(3) Multi-Disciplinary Team Approach - When a report of serious abuse in an out-of-home care facility is made, the law enforcement agency with primary responsibility for the investigation shall consider working with a multi-disciplinary team to assess the medical, mental health, placement, and support service needs of the child(ren). A multi-disciplinary team is any team of three or more persons qualified to provide a broad range of services related to child abuse. The team may include, but not be limited to, representatives from child welfare services, law enforcement, the district attorney's office, county counsel's office, licensing, child advocate's office, medical health services, mental health services trained to provide counseling services, and education.

HISTORY

1. New section filed 2-22-91; operative 3-24-91 (Register 91, No. 16).

Note

Note: Authority cited: Sections 11174 and 11174.1, Penal Code. Reference: Sections 11164, 11166, 11166.3, 11169 and 11170, Penal Code; Sections 300, 305 and 18951(d), Welfare and Institutions Code; Section 1596.876, Health and Safety Code.