ARTICLE 22 SUBSTITUTE A AS AMENDED
RELATING TO DELINQUENT AND DEPENDENT
CHILDREN
Section
1.
Sections 14-1-6, 14-1-7.3, 14-1-27, 14-1-32, 14-1-34, and 14-1-36 of
Chapter 14-1 entitled “Proceedings in Family Court” are hereby amended to read
as follows:
14-1-6. Retention
of jurisdiction. -- (a) When the court shall have obtained
jurisdiction over any child prior to the child ’s eighteenth having
attained the age of seventeen years birthday by the filing of a
petition alleging that the child is wayward or delinquent comes
within the jurisdiction of the court pursuant to § 14-1-5, the child shall,
except as specifically provided in this chapter, continue under the
jurisdiction of the court until he or she becomes twenty-one (21)
nineteen (19) years of age, unless discharged prior to turning nineteen
(19). When the court shall have
obtained jurisdiction over any child prior to the child’s eighteenth birthday
by the filing of a petition alleging that the child is dependent, neglected and
abused pursuant to § 14-1-5 and 40-11-7, the child shall, except as
specifically provided in this chapter, continue under the jurisdiction of the
court until he or she becomes eighteen (18) years of age; provided, that
prior to an order of discharge or emancipation being entered, the court shall
require the department of children, youth, and families to provide a
description of the transition services afforded the child in placement or a
detailed explanation as to the reason those services were not offered; provided further that any youth who comes
within the jurisdiction of the court by the filing of a wayward or delinquent
petition based upon an offense which was committed prior to July 1,2007,
including youth who are adjudicated and committed to the Rhode Island Training
School and who are placed in a temporary community placement as authorized by
the family court, may continue under
the jurisdiction of the court until he or she turns twenty one (21) years of
age.
(b) In any case where the
court shall not have acquired jurisdiction over any person prior to the
person's eighteenth birthday by the filing of a petition alleging that the
person had committed an offense, but a petition alleging that the person had
committed an offense which would be punishable as a felony if committed by an
adult has been filed before that person attains the age of twenty-one (21)
years of age, that person shall, except as specifically provided in this
chapter, be subject to the jurisdiction of the court until he or she becomes
twenty-one (21) years of age, unless discharged prior to turning twenty-one
(21).
(c) (b)
In any case where the court shall not have acquired jurisdiction over any
person prior to the person's attaining the age of seventeen years twenty-first
birthday by the filing of a petition alleging that the person had committed
an offense prior to the person's eighteenth attaining the age
of seventeen years birthday which would be punishable as a felony if
committed by an adult, that person shall be referred to the court which would
have had jurisdiction over the offense if it had been committed by an adult.
The court shall have jurisdiction to try that person for the offense committed
prior to the person attaining the age of seventeen years his or her
eighteenth birthday and, upon conviction, may impose a sentence
not exceeding the maximum penalty provided for the conviction of that offense.
(c) Any person who has
attained the age of seventeen years or older who commits an offense which would
constitute a felony or a misdemeanor if committed by an adult prior to his or
her eighteenth birthday, that person shall be referred to the court which would
have had jurisdiction over the offense if it had been committed by an adult.
The court shall have jurisdiction to try that person for the offense committed
prior to his or her eighteenth birthday and, upon conviction, may impose a
sentence not exceeding the maximum penalty provided for the conviction of that
offense.
(d) In any case where the court has certified and
adjudicated a child in accordance with the provisions of §§ 14-1-7.2 and
14-1-7.3, the jurisdiction of the court shall encompass the power and authority
to sentence the child to a period in excess of the age of nineteen (19) twenty-one
(21) years. However, in no case shall the sentence be in excess of the
maximum penalty provided by statute for the conviction of the offense.
(e) Nothing in this section shall be construed to affect
the jurisdiction of other courts over offenses committed by any person after he
or she reaches the age of nineteen (19) years.
14-1-7.3. Certification – Effect. -- (a)
Upon a finding by the court that the child is subject to certification pursuant
to § 14-1-7.2, the court shall afford the child a right to a jury trial, and
upon conviction for the offense charged, the court shall sentence the child in
accordance with one of the following alternatives:
(1) Impose a
sentence upon the child to the training school for youth until the time that
the child attains the age of twenty-one (21) nineteen (19) years;
(2) Impose a sentence
upon the child for a period in excess of the child's twenty-first nineteenth
birthday to the adult correctional institutions, with the period of the child's
minority to be served in the training school for youth in a facility to be
designated by the court. However, the
sentence shall not exceed the maximum sentence provided for by statute for
conviction of the offense.
(b) Any child who is certified
shall not be eligible for release from the training school for youth unless,
after hearing, the certifying judge, or the chief judge in his or her absence,
or his or her designee, determines by clear and convincing evidence that the
child will not pose a threat to the public during the term of the release.
(c) In the event that the
court has modified the order of certification pursuant to § 14-1-42 by
suspending the balance of the sentence imposed, any violation of the terms of
the suspended sentence shall be referred to the appropriate adult court to be
treated in accordance with the regular procedure of the court, unless the
person is under the age of eighteen (18) years at the time of the violation, in
which case, jurisdiction over the sentence shall continue in the family court.
(d) In the event that the
court, after a hearing on modification of the order of certification pursuant
to § 14-1-42, has determined that it has not been demonstrated by clear and
convincing evidence that the person has been sufficiently rehabilitated and
could be released in the community without posing a danger to the public should
the order of certification be modified, the court shall deny the modification
of the order of certification and direct the person to serve the balance of his
or her sentence under the jurisdiction of the department of corrections in a
facility under the control of the department. The sentence, including any term
served in the training school for youth, shall be subject to the regulations and
statutes governing the parole board.
(e) Any person who
commits an offense which would be punishable as a felony if committed by an
adult, after having been certified and adjudicated by the family court pursuant
to § 14-1-7.2, may, after a hearing by a justice of the family court to
determine that probable cause exists to believe that the child has committed
the offense, have the jurisdiction over his or her sentence transferred to the
department of corrections to be served in facilities under the control of the
department.
(f) A finding
that the child is subject to certification shall constitute presumptive
evidence of the non-amenability of the person to further treatment in
facilities available to the family court and the court shall transfer the jurisdiction
over his or her sentence to the department of corrections to be served in
facilities under the control of the department, unless the presumption is
rebutted by clear and convincing evidence which demonstrates that the person is
amenable to treatment in family court facilities.
(g) A finding that the
child is subject to certification shall also constitute presumptive evidence of
the non-amenability of the person to further treatment in facilities available
to the family court and the court shall waive jurisdiction over that offense
and all subsequent offenses and the child shall be prosecuted for the offense
by the court which would have jurisdiction if committed by an adult, unless the
presumption is rebutted by clear and convincing evidence which demonstrates
that the person is amenable to treatment in family court facilities.
(2) A waiver of
jurisdiction over a child pursuant to subdivision (1) of this subsection shall
constitute a waiver of jurisdiction over that child for that offense and for
all subsequent offenses of whatever nature, and the child shall be referred to
the court which would have had jurisdiction if the offense had been committed
by an adult.
(h) The name of any
person waived or certified and convicted shall be available to the general
public.
14-1-34. Placement
of dependent and neglected children – Criminal records of foster parents made
available. -- (a) If, after a hearing on any petition, a
child shall be found to be dependent or neglected within the meaning of this
chapter, the court shall by decree assign the custody of the child to the
director of children, youth and families, for any period that shall seem fit to
the court; and the director of children, youth, and families shall become
entitled to the custody of the child to the exclusion of any other person. The
court may at any time, for good cause shown, modify or revoke the decree.
(b) For any individual
eighteen (18) years of age or older, the family court may order that the case
management services be provided by the licensed agency, society, or institution
in which the individual is placed; provided, that the department monitors the
individual's case on a quarterly basis.
(c) (b) The department for children,
youth and families shall apply to the bureau of criminal identification of the
state police or the local police department for a nationwide criminal records
check of prospective foster parents. The check will conform to the applicable
federal standards including the taking of fingerprints to identify the
applicant. The department of children, youth, and families shall request the
attorney general, through the division of criminal identification, to make
available any criminal record of present and prospective foster parents. The
attorney general shall immediately comply with that request, and the department
of children, youth, and families, shall examine these records in determining
the suitability of these persons to be foster parents. The criminal record
check shall be conducted without charge to the foster parents. At the
conclusion of the background check required in this section, the state police,
attorney general or the local police department shall promptly destroy the
fingerprint record of the applicant obtained pursuant to this chapter.
14-1-36. Commitment of delinquent and wayward children. – (a) In all proceedings under
this chapter, when the court may orders a delinquent or
wayward child to be committed to an institution, the institution shall be
the training school for youth for a sentence no longer than the youth’s
nineteenth birthday. However, nothing contained in this section shall be
construed to prohibit the placing of any child in the custody of the department
of children, youth and families or any other agency, society, or institution,
pursuant to § 14-1-32. The commitment of delinquent or wayward children shall
be by an order and all assignments of the custody of dependent, neglected,
delinquent, or wayward children to the state training school for youth or to
the custody of the department of children, youth and families or to any of the
private institutions, agencies, or societies mentioned in this chapter shall be
by a decree signed by the justice of the court by whom the order or decree is
issued, and that order or decree shall be directed to any person that the court
may designate, and shall require that person to take the child and deliver him
or her to the officer in charge of the training school for youth or to the
custody of the director of children, youth and families or of the public or
private institution, agency, or society, and the order or decree shall
constitute the person charged with it, while he or she has the order in his or
her possession for service, an officer for all purposes under this chapter, in
any county of the state in which it may be necessary for him or her to go. The
person charged with carrying out the order or decree shall also deliver to the
officer of the public or private institution, agency, or society or to the
training school for youth or the director of children, youth and families a
copy of the order or the decree signed by the justice of the court issuing it,
and subject to the provisions of this chapter, the officer and other
authorities in charge of the training school for youth or the director of
children, youth and families or any public or private institution, agency, or
society shall hold the child according to the terms of any other order or
decree that may from time to time thereafter be issued by the court in relation
to the child.
(b) Whenever the court shall
commit a child to the training school for youth or to the director of children,
youth and families or any other institution or agency, it shall transmit with
the order of commitment a summary of its information concerning the child.
SECTION 2.
Section 42-72-3 of Chapter 42-72 entitled “Department of Children, Youth and
Families” is hereby amended as follows:
42-72-3. Definitions. –
For the purposes of this chapter:
(1)
"Advocate" means the child advocate or any of his or her agents,
servants or employees as established pursuant to this title.
(2)
"Child" or "children" means any person under the age of
eighteen (18); provided that children over the age of eighteen (18) and who
continue to receive services from the department who are nevertheless
subject to the continuing jurisdiction of the family court pursuant to
chapter 1 of title 14 and/or who are defined as emotionally
disturbed and/or as children with functional developmental disabilities as
referenced in this section according to chapter 7 of title 40.1
shall be considered "children" for all the purposes of this chapter.
(3) "Child
abuse and neglect" is that term as defined in chapter 11 of title 40.
(4)
"Department" means the department of children, youth, and families.
(5)
"Director" means the director of children, youth, and families, or
his or her designee.
(6)
"Regional service center" means the respective local or regional
units established by the director.
(7)
"Near fatality" means an act that, as certified by a physician,
placed the child in serious or critical condition.
(8)
"Infant" means any person under the age of twenty-four (24) months.
SECTION 3: Section 42-72-5 of Chapter 42-72 entitled
“Department of Children, Youth and Families” is hereby amended as follows:
42-72-5. Powers and scope of
activities. – (a) The department is the principal agency
of the state to mobilize the human, physical and financial resources available
to plan, develop, and evaluate a comprehensive and integrated statewide program
of services designed to ensure the opportunity for children to reach their full
potential. The services include prevention, early intervention, out-reach,
placement, care and treatment, and after-care programs; provided, however, that
the department notifies the state police and cooperates with local police
departments when it receives and/or investigates a complaint of sexual assault
on a minor and concludes that probable cause exists to support the
allegations(s). The department also serves as an advocate for the needs of
children.
(b) To accomplish
the purposes and duties, as set forth in this chapter, the director is
authorized and empowered:
(1) To
establish those administrative and operational divisions of the department that
the director determines is in the best interests of fulfilling the purposes and
duties of this chapter;
(2) To
assign different tasks to staff members that the director determines best suit
the purposes of this chapter;
(3) To
establish plans and facilities for emergency treatment, relocation and physical
custody of abused or neglected children which may include, but are not limited
to, homemaker/educator child case aides, specialized foster family programs,
day care facilities, crisis teams, emergency parents, group homes for teenage
parents, family centers within existing community agencies, and counseling
services;
(4) To establish,
monitor, and evaluate protective services for children including, but not
limited to, purchase of services from private agencies and establishment of a
policy and procedure manual to standardize protective services;
(5) To plan
and initiate primary and secondary treatment programs for abused and neglected
children;
(6) To
evaluate the services of the department and to conduct periodic comprehensive
needs assessment;
(7) To
license, approve, monitor, and evaluate all residential and non-residential
child care institutions, group homes, foster homes, and programs;
(8) To
recruit and coordinate community resources, public and private;
(9) To promulgate
rules and regulations concerning the confidentiality, disclosure and
expungement of case records pertaining to matters under the jurisdiction of the
department;
(10) To
establish a minimum mandatory level of twenty (20) hours of training per year
and provide ongoing staff development for all staff; provided, however, all
social workers hired after June 15, 1991, within the department shall have a
minimum of a bachelor's degree in social work or a closely related field, and
must be appointed from a valid civil service list;
(11) To
establish procedures for reporting suspected child abuse and neglect pursuant
to chapter 11 of title 40;
(12) To
promulgate all rules and regulations necessary for the execution of
departmental powers pursuant to the Administrative Procedures Act, chapter 35
of title 42;
(13) To
provide and act as a clearinghouse for information, data and other materials
relative to children;
(14) To initiate
and carry out studies and analysis which will aid in solving local, regional
and statewide problems concerning children;
(15) To
represent and act on behalf of the state in connection with federal grant
programs applicable to programs for children in the functional areas described
in this chapter;
(16) To
seek, accept, and otherwise take advantage of all federal aid available to the
department, and to assist other agencies of the state, local agencies, and community
groups in taking advantage of all federal grants and subventions available for
children;
(17) To
review and coordinate those activities of agencies of the state and of any
political subdivision of the state which affect the full and fair utilization
of community resources for programs for children, and initiate programs that
will help assure utilization;
(18) To
administer the pilot juvenile restitution program, including the overseeing and
coordinating of all local community based restitution programs, and the
establishment of procedures for the processing of payments to children
performing community service; and
(19) To
adopt rules and regulations which:
(i) For the
twelve (12) month period beginning on October 1, 1983, and for each subsequent
twelve (12) month period, establish specific goals as to the maximum number of
children who will remain in foster care for a period in excess of two (2)
years; and
(ii) Are
reasonably necessary to implement the child welfare services and foster care
programs;
(20) May
establish and conduct seminars for the purpose of educating children regarding
sexual abuse;
(21) To
establish fee schedules by regulations for the processing of requests from adoption
placement agencies for adoption studies, adoption study updates, and
supervision related to interstate and international adoptions. The fee shall
equal the actual cost of the service(s) rendered, but in no event shall the fee
exceed two thousand dollars ($2,000);
(22) To be
responsible for the education of all children who are placed, assigned, or
otherwise accommodated for residence by the department in a state operated or
supported community residence licensed by a Rhode Island state agency. In
fulfilling this responsibility the department is authorized to enroll and pay
for the education of students in the public schools or, when necessary and
appropriate, to itself provide education in accordance with the regulations of
the board of regents for elementary and secondary education either directly or
through contract;
(23) To
develop multidisciplinary service plans, in conjunction with the department of
health, at hospitals prior to the discharge of any drug-exposed babies. The
plan requires the development of a plan using all health care professionals.
(24) To be
responsible for the delivery of appropriate mental health services to seriously
emotionally disturbed children and children with functional developmental
disabilities. Appropriate mental health services may include
hospitalization, placement in a residential treatment facility, or treatment in
a community based setting. The department is charged with the responsibility
for developing the public policy and programs related to the needs of seriously
emotionally disturbed children and children with functional developmental
disabilities.
In
fulfilling its responsibilities the department shall:
(i) Plan a
diversified and comprehensive network of programs and services to meet the
needs of seriously emotionally disturbed children and children with
functional developmental disabilities;
(ii)
Provide the overall management and supervision of the state program for
seriously emotionally disturbed children and children with functional
developmental disabilities;
(iii) Promote the
development of programs for preventing and controlling emotional or behavioral
disorders in children;
(iv)
Coordinate the efforts of several state departments and agencies to meet the
needs of seriously emotionally disturbed children and children with
functional developmental disabilities and to work with private agencies
serving those children;
(v) Promote
the development of new resources for program implementation in providing
services to seriously emotionally disturbed children and children with
functional developmental disabilities.
The
department shall adopt rules and regulations, which are reasonably necessary to
implement a program of mental health services for seriously emotionally disturbed
children.
Each
community, as defined in chapter 7 of title 16, shall contribute to the
department, at least in accordance with rules and regulations to be adopted by
the department, at least its average per pupil cost for special education for
the year in which placement commences, as its share of the cost of educational
services furnished to a seriously emotionally disturbed child pursuant to this
section in a residential treatment program which includes the delivery of
educational services.
"Seriously
emotionally disturbed child" means any person under the age of eighteen
(18) years or any person under the age of twenty-one (21) years who began to
receive services from the department prior to attaining eighteen (18) years of
age and has continuously received those services thereafter who has been
diagnosed as having an emotional, behavioral or mental disorder under the
current edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual and that disability
has been on-going for one year or more or has the potential of being ongoing
for one year or more, and the child is in need of multi-agency intervention,
and the child is in an out-of-home placement or is at risk of placement because
of the disability.
A child with a “functional
developmental disability” means any person under the age of eighteen (18) years
or any person under the age of twenty-one (21) years who began to receive
services from the department prior to attaining eighteen (18) years of age and
has continuously received those services thereafter .
The term “functional
developmental disability” includes autism spectrum disorders and means a
severe, chronic disability of a person which:
(a) Is attributable to a mental or physical impairment or combination
of mental physical impairments;
(b) Is manifested before the person attains age
eighteen (18);
(c)Is likely to continue
indefinitely;
(d) Results in age-
appropriate substantial functional limitations in three (3) or more of the
following areas of major life activity.
(i) Self-care;
(ii) Receptive and expressive
language;
(iii)Learning;
(iv) Mobility;
(v) Self-direction;
(vi) Capacity for Independent
Living; and
(vii) Economic
self-sufficiency; and
(e)Reflects the person’s need
for a combination and sequence of special, interdisciplinary, or generic care,
treatment, or other services which are of life-long or extended duration and
are individually planned and coordinated.
(25) To provide access to
services to any person under the age of eighteen (18) years or any person under
the age of twenty-one (21) years who began to receive child welfare services
from the department prior to attaining eighteen (18) years of age, has
continuously received those services thereafter and elects to continue to
receive such services after attaining the age of eighteen (18) years.
(25)(26)To
develop and maintain, in collaboration with other state and private agencies, a
comprehensive continuum of care in this state for children in the care and custody
of the department or at risk of being in state care. This continuum of care
should be family-centered and community-based with the focus of maintaining
children safely within their families or, when a child cannot live at home,
within as close proximity to home as possible based on the needs of the child
and resource availability. The continuum should include community-based
prevention, family support and crisis intervention services as well as a full
array of foster care and residential services, including residential services
designed to meet the needs of children who are seriously emotionally disturbed,
children who have a functional developmental disability and youth who
have juvenile justice issues. The director shall make reasonable efforts to provide
a comprehensive continuum of care for children in the care and custody of the
DCYF, taking into account the availability of public and private resources and
financial appropriations and the director shall submit an annual report to the
general assembly as to the status of his or her efforts in accordance with the
provisions of subsection 42-72-4(b)(13).
(c) In order to
assist in the discharge of his or her duties, the director may request from any
agency of the state information pertinent to the affairs and problems of
children.
(d) Funding for these clients shall include funds that are
transferred to the Department of Human Services as part of the Managed Health
Care program transfer. However, the expenditures relating to these clients shall
not be part of the Department of Human Services' Caseload estimated for the
semi-annual Caseload Estimating Conference. The expenditures shall be accounted
for separately.
(e) The assembly has included
funding in the FY 2008 Department of Children, Youth and Families budget in the
amount of $10.5 million from all sources of funds and $6.0 million from general
revenues to provide a managed system to care for children serviced between 18
to 21 years of age. The department shall manage this caseload to this level of
funding.
(27) To administer funds under the John H. Chafee Foster Care
Independence and Educational And Training Voucher (ETV) Programs of Title IV-E
of the Social Security Act, and the DCYF Higher Education Opportunity Grant
Program as outlined in RIGL §42-72.8, in accordance with rules and regulations
as promulgated by the director of the department.
SECTION
4. Section 42-72.8 of the General Laws
in Title 42 entitled State Affairs and Government is hereby amended to read as
follows:
42-72.8-2. Administration of program. –
(a) Each year the department shall identify and recommend from among youth
children in its legal custody, or who were in the Department’s legal
custody on their eighteenth (18th) birthday, those students who
may be eligible to apply for a Higher Education Opportunity Incentive Grant.
The department of elementary and secondary education shall afford all
appropriate assistance to the department in the identification of youth children
who may be eligible for such grants. Each selected applicant will receive
grants to supplement federal, state and institutional scholarships and grants
awarded to the applicant in an amount not to exceed the full cost of tuition,
fees and room and board charges:
(b) A grant
period shall be limited to two (2) years of full-time study at the Community
College of Rhode Island, four (4) years of full-time study at Rhode Island
College, and the University of Rhode Island, and in no instance shall the grant
period exceed a period of four (4) years. Grant recipients shall be enrolled
full-time and shall continue to make satisfactory progress toward an academic
certificate or degree;
(c) The department shall make
recommendations for grant awards from among those youth children
who:
(1)
Have not yet reached the age of eighteen (18) on the day of
recommendation, are in the legal custody of the department on the day of
recommendation and have remained in such custody for at least twenty-four (24)
months prior to the day of recommendation; or, for former foster care, have
reached the age of eighteen (18) prior to the date of recommendation, have not
yet reached the age of twenty-one (21) and were in the custody of the
department from their sixteenth (16th) to their eighteenth (18th)
birthdays; and
(2) Have
graduated from high school or received the equivalent of a high school diploma
not more than one year prior to the date of recommendation; and
(3) Has not
reached his/her twenty-first (21st) birthday. Grant recipients shall
continue to be eligible for services from the department including, but not
limited to, foster care during college breaks or for commuting students.
SECTION 5.
This article shall take effect upon passage.