Chapter 781
AN ACT
HB 3113
Relating to child abuse investigations; amending ORS 419B.020.
Be It Enacted by the People of
the State of
SECTION 1.
ORS 419B.020 is amended to read:
419B.020. (1) [Upon receipt of an oral report of child
abuse, the Department of Human Services or the law enforcement agency]
If the Department of Human Services or a law enforcement agency receives a
report of child abuse, the department or the agency shall immediately:
(a) Cause an
investigation to be made to determine the nature and cause of the abuse of the
child; and
(b) Notify the Child
Care Division if the alleged child abuse occurred in a child care facility as
defined in ORS 657A.250.
(2) If the abuse
reported in subsection (1) of this section is alleged to have occurred at a
child care facility:
(a) The department and
the law enforcement agency shall jointly determine the roles and
responsibilities of the department and the agency in their respective
investigations; and
(b) The department and
the agency shall each report the outcomes of their investigations to the Child
Care Division.
[(2)] (3) If the law enforcement agency conducting the
investigation finds reasonable cause to believe that abuse has occurred, the
law enforcement agency shall notify by oral report followed by written report
the local office of the department. The department shall provide protective
social services of its own or of other available social agencies if necessary
to prevent further abuses to the child or to safeguard the child’s welfare.
[(3)] (4) If a child is taken into protective custody by the
department, the department shall promptly make reasonable efforts to ascertain
the name and address of the child’s parents or guardian.
[(4)(a)] (5)(a) If a child is taken into protective custody
by the department or a law enforcement official, the department or law
enforcement official shall, if possible, make reasonable efforts to advise the
parents or guardian immediately, regardless of the time of day, that the child
has been taken into custody, the reasons the child has been taken into custody
and general information about the child’s placement, and the telephone number
of the local office of the department and any after-hours telephone numbers.
(b) Notice may be given
by any means reasonably certain of notifying the parents or guardian, including
but not limited to written, telephonic or in-person oral notification. If the
initial notification is not in writing, the information required by paragraph
(a) of this subsection also shall be provided to the parents or guardian in
writing as soon as possible.
(c) The department also
shall make a reasonable effort to notify the noncustodial parent of the
information required by paragraph (a) of this subsection in a timely manner.
(d) If a child is taken
into custody while under the care and supervision of a person or organization
other than the parent, the department, if possible, shall immediately notify
the person or organization that the child has been taken into protective
custody.
[(5)] (6) If a law enforcement officer or the department,
when taking a child into protective custody, has reasonable cause to believe
that the child has been affected by sexual abuse and rape of a child as defined
in ORS 419B.005 (1)(a)(C) and that physical evidence of the abuse exists and is
likely to disappear, the court may authorize a physical examination for the
purposes of preserving evidence if the court finds that it is in the best
interest of the child to have such an examination. Nothing in this section
affects the authority of the department to consent to physical examinations of
the child at other times.
[(6)] (7) A minor child of 12 years of age or older may
refuse to consent to the examination described in subsection [(5)] (6) of this section. The
examination shall be conducted by or under the supervision of a physician
licensed under ORS chapter 677 or a nurse practitioner licensed under ORS
chapter 678 and, whenever practicable, trained in conducting such examinations.
Approved by the Governor July 16, 2007
Filed in the office of Secretary of State July 17, 2007
Effective date January 1, 2008
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