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IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
BY JUDICIARY, RULES AND ADMINISTRATION COMMITTEE
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AN ACT
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amended to read as follows:
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16-1602. DEFINITIONS. For purposes of this chapter:
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(1) "Abused" means any case in which a child has been the victim of:
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(a) Conduct or omission resulting in skin bruising, bleeding, mal-
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nutrition, burns, fracture of any bone, head injury, soft tissue
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swelling, failure to thrive or death, and such condition or death is not
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justifiably explained, or where the history given concerning such con-
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dition or death is at variance with the degree or type of such condition
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or death, or the circumstances indicate that such condition or death may
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not be the product of an accidental occurrence; or
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(b) Sexual conduct, including rape, molestation, incest, prostitu-
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tion, obscene or pornographic photographing, filming or depiction for
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commercial purposes, human trafficking as defined in section 18-8602,
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threatening the child's health or welfare or mental injury to the child.
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(2) "Abandoned" means the failure of the parent to maintain a normal
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parental relationship with his child including, but not limited to, reason-
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able support or regular personal contact. Failure to maintain this rela-
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tionship without just cause for a period of one (1) year shall constitute
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prima facie evidence of abandonment.
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(3) "Adaptive equipment" means any piece of equipment or any item that
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is used to increase, maintain or improve the parenting capabilities of a par-
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ent with a disability.
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(4) "Adjudicatory hearing" means a hearing to determine:
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(a) Whether the child comes under the jurisdiction of the court pur-
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suant to the provisions of this chapter;
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(b) Whether continuation of the child in the home would be contrary to
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the child's welfare and whether the best interest of the child requires
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protective supervision or vesting legal custody of the child in an au-
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thorized agency.
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(5) "Age of developmentally appropriate" means:
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(a) Activities that are generally accepted as suitable for children of
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the same chronological age or level of maturity or that are determined
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to be developmentally appropriate for a child, based on the development
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of cognitive, emotional, physical and behavioral capacities that are
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typical for an age or age group; and
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(b) In the case of a specific child, activities or items that are suit-
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able for the child based on the developmental stages attained by the
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child with respect to the cognitive, emotional, physical and behavioral
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capacities of the child.
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(6) "Aggravated circumstances" includes, but is not limited to:
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(a) Circumstances in which the parent has engaged in any of the follow-
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ing:
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(i) Abandonment, chronic abuse or chronic neglect of the child.
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Chronic neglect or chronic abuse of a child shall consist of abuse
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or neglect that is so extreme or repetitious as to indicate that
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return of the child to the home would result in unacceptable risk
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to the health and welfare of the child.
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(ii) Sexual abuse against a child of the parent. Sexual abuse, for
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the purposes of this section, includes any conduct described in
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section 18-1506, 18-1506A, 18-1507, 18-1508, 18-1508A, 18-6101,
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(iii) Torture of a child; any conduct listed in section
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results in serious or great bodily injury to a child; voluntary
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manslaughter of a child, or aiding or abetting such voluntary
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manslaughter, soliciting such voluntary manslaughter or attempt-
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ing or conspiring to commit such voluntary manslaughter;
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(b) The parent has committed murder, aided or abetted a murder, so-
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licited a murder or attempted or conspired to commit murder; or
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(c) The parental rights of the parent to another child have been termi-
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nated involuntarily.
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(7) "Authorized agency" means the department, a local agency, a person,
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an organization, corporation, benevolent society or association licensed
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or approved by the department or the court to receive children for control,
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care, maintenance or placement.
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(8) "Caregiver" means a foster parent with whom a child in foster care
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has been placed or a designated official for a child care institution in
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which a child in foster care has been placed.
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(9) "Case plan hearing" means a hearing to approve, modify or reject the
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(10) "Child" means an individual who is under the age of eighteen (18)
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years.
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(11) "Child advocacy center" or "CAC" means an organization that ad-
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heres to national best practice standards established by the national
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membership and accrediting body for children's advocacy centers and that
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promotes a comprehensive and coordinated multidisciplinary team response to
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allegations of child abuse by maintaining a child-friendly facility at which
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appropriate services are provided. These services may include forensic in-
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terviews, forensic medical examinations, mental health services and other
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related victim services.
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(12) "Circumstances of the child" includes, but is not limited to, the
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joint legal custody or joint physical custody of the child.
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(13) "Commit" means to transfer legal and physical custody.
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(14) "Concurrent planning" means a planning model that prepares for and
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implements different outcomes at the same time.
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(15) "Court" means district court or magistrate's division thereof, or
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if the context requires, a magistrate or judge thereof.
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(16) "Custodian" means a person, other than a parent or legal guardian,
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to whom legal or joint legal custody of the child has been given by court or-
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der.
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(17) "Department" means the department of health and welfare and its au-
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thorized representatives.
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(18) "Disability" means, with respect to an individual, any mental or
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physical impairment that substantially limits one (1) or more major life
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activity of the individual including, but not limited to, self-care, man-
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ual tasks, walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, learning or working, or a
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record of such an impairment, or being regarded as having such an impairment.
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Disability shall not include transvestism, transsexualism, pedophilia,
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exhibitionism, voyeurism, other sexual behavior disorders, or substance use
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disorders, compulsive gambling, kleptomania or pyromania. Sexual prefer-
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ence or orientation is not considered an impairment or disability. Whether
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an impairment substantially limits a major life activity shall be determined
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without consideration of the effect of corrective or mitigating measures
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used to reduce the effects of the impairment.
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(19) "Family or household member" shall have the same meaning as in sec-
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(20) "Foster care" means twenty-four (24) hour substitute parental care
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for children placed away from their parents or guardians by persons who may
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or may not be related to the children and for whom the state agency has place-
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ment and care responsibility.
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(21) "Foster parent" means a person or persons licensed to provide fos-
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ter care.
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(22) "Grant administrator" means the supreme court or any organization
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or agency as may be designated by the supreme court in accordance with such
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procedures as may be adopted by the supreme court. The grant administrator
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shall administer funds from the guardian ad litem account in accordance with
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the provisions of this chapter.
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(23) "Guardian ad litem" means a person appointed by the court pursuant
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to a guardian ad litem volunteer program to act as special advocate for a
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child under this chapter.
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(24) "Guardian ad litem coordinator" means a person or entity receiving
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moneys from the grant administrator for the purpose of carrying out any of
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(25) "Guardian ad litem program" means the program to recruit, train and
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coordinate volunteer persons to serve as guardians ad litem for abused, ne-
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glected or abandoned children.
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(26) "Homeless," as used in this chapter, shall mean that the child is
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without adequate shelter or other living facilities, and the lack of such
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shelter or other living facilities poses a threat to the health, safety or
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well-being of the child.
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tion that provides education and technical assistance to child advocacy cen-
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ters and to interagency multidisciplinary teams developed pursuant to sec-
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(28) "Law enforcement agency" means a city police department, the pros-
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(29) "Legal custody" means a relationship created by court order, which
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vests in a custodian the following rights and responsibilities:
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(a) To have physical custody and control of the child, and to determine
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where and with whom the child shall live.
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(b) To supply the child with food, clothing, shelter and incidental ne-
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cessities.
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(c) To provide the child with care, education and discipline.
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(d) To authorize ordinary medical, dental, psychiatric, psychologi-
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cal, or other remedial care and treatment for the child, including care
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and treatment in a facility with a program of services for children, and
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to authorize surgery if the surgery is deemed by two (2) physicians li-
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censed to practice in this state to be necessary for the child.
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(e) Where the parents share legal custody, the custodian may be vested
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with the custody previously held by either or both parents.
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(30) "Mental injury" means a substantial impairment in the intellectual
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or psychological ability of a child to function within a normal range of per-
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formance and/or behavior, for short or long terms.
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(31) "Neglected" means a child:
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(a) Who is without proper parental care and control, or subsistence,
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medical or other care or control necessary for his well-being because of
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the conduct or omission of his parents, guardian or other custodian or
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their neglect or refusal to provide them, and such conduct or omission
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has caused serious harm or is likely to cause imminent serious harm to
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the child; however, no child whose parent or guardian chooses for such
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child treatment by prayers through spiritual means alone in lieu of med-
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ical treatment shall be deemed for that reason alone to be neglected or
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lack parental care necessary for his health and well-being, nor shall a
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child whose parent or guardian chooses for such child a second opinion,
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or further information and alternatives, regarding medical treatment
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be deemed for that reason alone to be neglected or lack the parental care
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necessary for his health and well-being, but this subsection shall not
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or
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(b) Whose parents, guardian or other custodian are unable to discharge
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their responsibilities to and for the child and, as a result of such
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inability, the child lacks the parental care necessary for his health,
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safety or well-being and has suffered serious harm or is likely to suf-
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fer imminent serious harm; or
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(c) Who has been placed for care or adoption in violation of law; or
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(d) Who is without proper education because of the failure to comply
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(32) "Permanency hearing" means a hearing to review, approve, reject or
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modify the permanency plan of the department, and review reasonable efforts
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in accomplishing the permanency plan.
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(33) "Permanency plan" means a plan for a continuous residence and main-
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tenance of nurturing relationships during the child's minority.
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(34) "Protective order" means an order issued by the court in a child
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protection case, prior to the adjudicatory hearing, to enable the child to
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an adjudicatory hearing to preserve the unity of the family and to ensure the
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Such an order shall be in the same form and have the same effect as a domes-
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Code. A protective order shall be for a period not to exceed three (3) months
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unless otherwise stated in the order.
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(35) "Protective supervision" is a legal status created by court order
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in a child protective case whereby the child is in the legal custody of his or
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her parent(s), guardian(s) or other legal custodian(s), subject to supervi-
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sion by the department.
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(36) "Psychotropic medication" means a drug prescribed to affect psy-
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chological functioning, perception, behavior or mood. Psychotropic medi-
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cations include, but are not limited to, antidepressants, mood stabilizers,
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antipsychotics, antianxiety medications, sedatives and stimulants.
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(37) "Reasonable and prudent parent standard" means the standard of
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care characterized by careful and sensible parental decisions that main-
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tain the health, safety and best interests of a child while simultaneously
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encouraging the emotional and developmental growth of the child that a care-
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giver shall use when determining whether to allow a child in foster care
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under the responsibility of the state to participate in extracurricular,
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enrichment, cultural or social activities.
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(38) "Relative" means a child's grandparent, great grandparent, aunt,
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great aunt, uncle, great uncle, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, first
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cousin, sibling and half-sibling.
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(39) "Residual parental rights and responsibilities" means those
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rights and responsibilities remaining with the parents after the transfer of
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legal custody including, but not necessarily limited to, the right of visi-
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tation, the right to consent to adoption, the right to determine religious
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affiliation, the right to family counseling when beneficial, and the respon-
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sibility for support.
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(40) "Shelter care" means places designated by the department for tem-
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porary care of children pending court disposition or placement.
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(41) "Supportive services," as used in this chapter, shall mean ser-
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vices that assist parents with a disability to compensate for those aspects
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of their disability that affect their ability to care for their child and
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that will enable them to discharge their parental responsibilities. The
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term includes specialized or adapted training, evaluations or assistance
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with effectively using adaptive equipment and accommodations that allow
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parents with a disability to benefit from other services including, but not
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limited to, Braille texts or sign language interpreters.