Ala. Admin. Code r. 660-5-34-.04
Current through Register Vol. 43, No. 1, October 31, 2024
Section 660-5-34-.04 - Intake In Protective Services(1) A report of alleged child abuse/neglect is not accepted on any persons who have reached their eighteenth birthday.(2) A report of alleged child abuse/neglect is not accepted on an unborn child. Other Department or community services may be provided to the family of the unborn child as deemed appropriate.(3) For purposes of child protective services, a person allegedly responsible for abuse/neglect is defined as a person fourteen years of age or older. No child under the age of fourteen will be listed on a child abuse/neglect report as responsible for abuse/neglect. Reports of physical, mental or sexual abuse committed by a child under the age of fourteen will be accepted and assessed (Refer to Rule 660-5-34-.12) to determine the possibility of neglect, lack of supervision or exploitation contributing to the child's behavior. If a child under the age of fourteen commits sexual acts that go beyond curiosity or experimentation on another child, the report will be assessed to consider the possibility that the child committing such acts may be a victim of child sexual abuse and/or in need of services.(4) Once a report of suspected child abuse/neglect has been received, it must be investigated, and the investigation is known by DHR as the child abuse/neglect child abuse neglect (CA/N) assessment.(5) The following criteria must be considered at intake when determining which reports will be investigated first:(a) The allegations in the report;(b) The seriousness of the incident(s); and(c) The child's vulnerability (i.e., capacity for selfprotection) and the potential risk of serious harm to the child.(6) DHR's response time is the timeframe within which inperson initial contact shall be made with the children who are allegedly abuse or neglected (i.e., at risk of serious harm) and all other children in the home. (a) Child welfare staff shall respond immediately (i.e., as soon as possible after a report is received, but no later than twelve hours from receipt of the intake information) when the intake information indicates serious harm will likely occur within twentyfour hours.(b) For situations in which an immediate response is not required, child welfare staff shall respond as quickly as the intake information warrants and no later than five calendar days from the date the intake information is received.(c) Child welfare staff must make contact with all other children (those who live in the home with children reported as abused or neglected) as soon as the intake information warrants, but not later than fifteen calendar days from the date the report was received.(7) All reports of child abuse/neglect must be cleared through Alabama's Central Registry on Child Abuse/Neglect (Refer to Rule 660-5-34-.07.) to determine if there have been previous reports involving the children, their family members, and all persons allegedly responsible for abuse/neglect.(8) As child abuse/neglect reports are received in the County Department, these reports must be reported to the District Attorney's office and the local law enforcement agency, according to the County Department's written working agreement with the District Attorney and law enforcement.(9) Afterhours Intake on Emergency Calls Every County Department of Human Resources shall have a written plan for responding to afterhours emergency calls for protective services to children which identifies, at a minimum, contact numbers for oncall staff, backup oncall staff, and law enforcement agencies. Author: Jerome Webb
Ala. Admin. Code r. 660-5-34-.04
Effective October 11, 1983. Emergency amendment effective April 12, 1984. Emergency amendment rescinded July 16, 1984. Succedent emergency amendment effective October 29, 1984. Succedent permanent amendment effective February 11, 1985. Succedent emergency amendment effective October 1, 1985. Succedent permanent amendment effective January 9, 1986. Succedent permanent amendment effective March 11, 1988. Repealed: Effective August 11, 1988. Amended: Rule (formerly 660-5-34-.03) readopted effective August 11, 1988. Amended: Filed October 4, 1996; effective November 8, 1996. Amended: Filed April 5, 2001; effective May 10, 2001. Amended: Filed February 4, 2003; effective March 11, 2003. Repealed and New Rule: Filed September 4, 2003; effective October 9, 2003. Repealed and New Rule: Filed June 2, 2006; effective July 7, 2006. Repealed and New Rule: Filed May 4, 2007; Effective June 8, 2007.Statutory Authority: 42 U.S.C. §§ 510-15-107 ; 45 C.F.R. §1340.15 ; Code of Ala. 1975, Title 26, Chapter 14; Title 13A33.