Source: http://getmychildrenback.com/motion-to-dismiss-cps-rhode-island/
Timestamp: 2017-12-17 02:28:19
Document Index: 14835221

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 40', '§ 40', '§ 40', '§ 40', '§ 40', '§ 40', '§ 40', '§ 15', '§ 8', '§ 15', '§ 40', '§ 42', '§ 42', '§ 42', '§ 40', '§ 40', '§ 40', '§ 40', '§ 40', '§ 40', '§ 40', '§ 40', '§ 40', '§ 40', '§ 40', '§ 40', '§ 40', '§ 40', '§ 42', '§ 42', '§ 42', '§ 40', '§ 40', '§ 40', '§ 40', '§ 40', '§ 15', '§ 42', '§ 15', '§ 40', '§ 40', '§ 03', '§ 03', '§ 03', '§ 15', '§ 15', '§ 40', '§ 40', '§ 40']

Motion To Dismiss – CPS – Rhode Island – Get My Children Back
How to write a Motion To Dismiss for CPS Juvenile Court In Rhode Island
Citation: Gen. Laws § 40-11-2 ‘Abused and/or neglected child’ means a child whose physical or mental health or welfare is harmed or threatened with harm when his or her parent or other person responsible for his or her welfare:
‘Shaken baby syndrome’ means a form of abusive head trauma characterized by a constellation of symptoms caused by other than accidental traumatic injury resulting from the violent shaking and/or impact upon an infant or young child’s head.
Citation: Gen. Laws § 40-11-2 The term ‘abused and/or neglected child’ includes a child whose physical or mental health or welfare is harmed or threatened with harm when the child’s parent or other person responsible for his or her welfare:
Fails to provide the child with a minimum degree of care or proper supervision or guardianship because of his or her unwillingness or inability to do so by situations or conditions such as, but not limited to, social problems, mental incompetency, or the use of a drug, drugs, or alcohol to the extent that the parent or other person responsible for the child’s welfare loses his or her ability or is unwilling to properly care for the child
Citation: Gen. Laws § 40-11-2 The term ‘abused and/or neglected child’ includes a child whose physical or mental health or welfare is harmed or threatened with harm when his or her parent or other person responsible for his or her welfare:
Citation: Gen. Laws § 40-11-2 ‘Mental injury’ includes a state of substantially diminished psychological or intellectual functioning related to, but not limited to, such factors as failure to thrive, ability to think or reason, control of aggressive or self-destructive impulses, acting out, or misbehavior, which includes incorrigibility, ungovernability, or habitual truancy. The injury must be clearly attributable to the unwillingness or inability of the parent or other person responsible for the child’s welfare to exercise a minimum degree of care toward the child.
Citation: Gen. Laws § 40-11-2
The term ‘abused and/or neglected child’ includes a child whose physical or mental health or welfare is harmed or threatened with harm when his or her parent or other person responsible for his or her welfare abandons or deserts the child.
Citation: Gen. Laws § 40-11-3
A report is required when any person has reasonable cause to know or suspect that a child has been abused or neglected.
Citation: Gen. Laws § 40-11-2 ‘Person responsible for child’s welfare’ means:
Citation: Gen. Laws § 15-15-1 ‘Domestic abuse’ means the occurrence of one or more of the following acts between present or former family members, parents, stepparents, or persons who are or have been in a substantive dating or engagement relationship within the past 1 year in which at least one of the persons is a minor:
‘Stalking’ means harassing another person or willfully, maliciously, and repeatedly following another person with the intent to place that person in reasonable fear of bodily injury.
‘Cyberstalking’ means transmitting any communication by computer to any person or causing any person to be contacted for the sole purpose of harassing that person or his or her family.
‘Harassing’ means following a knowing and willful course of conduct directed at a specific person with the intent to seriously alarm, annoy, or bother the person, and which serves no legitimate purpose. The course of conduct must be such as would cause a reasonable person to suffer substantial emotional distress or be in fear of bodily injury.
Citation: Gen. Laws § 8-8.1-1 ‘Domestic abuse’ means the occurrence of one or more of the following acts between cohabitants or against the minor child of a cohabitant, or the occurrence of one or more of the following acts between persons who are or have been in a substantive dating or engagement relationship within the past 1 year or against a minor child in the custody of the plaintiff. ‘Domestic abuse’ shall be determined by the court’s consideration of the following factors:
The frequency of the interaction between the parties
‘Stalking’ means harassing another person or willfully, maliciously, and/or repeatedly following another person with the intent to place that person in reasonable fear of bodily injury.
‘Harassing’ means following a knowing and willful course of conduct directed at a specific person with the intent to seriously alarm, annoy, or bother the person, and which serves no legitimate purpose. The course of conduct must cause a reasonable person to suffer substantial emotional distress or to be in fear of bodily injury.
Citation: Gen. Laws §§ 15-15-1; 8-8.1-1 In civil law: ‘Parents’ means persons who together are the legal parents of one or more children regardless of their marital status or whether they have lived together at any time.
‘Present or former family member’ means the spouse, former spouse, minor children, stepchildren, or persons who are related by blood or marriage.
‘Substantive dating’ or ‘engagement relationship’ means a significant and personal/intimate relationship that shall be adjudged by the court’s consideration of the following factors:
In criminal law: ‘Cohabitants’ means emancipated minors or persons age 18 or older, not related by blood or marriage, who together are not the legal parents of one or more children, and who have resided together within the preceding 3 years or who are residing in the same living quarters.
Citation: Gen. Laws §§ 40-11-13; 42-72-8 All records concerning reports of child abuse and neglect, including reports made to the department, shall be confidential except as specifically provided by this chapter or § 42-72-8, or specifically authorized by the family court in furtherance of the purposes directly connected with this chapter.
Citation: Gen. Laws § 42-72-8 Records may be disclosed when necessary to:
Citation: Gen. Laws § 42-72-8 The director may disclose the findings or other information about a case as the director deems necessary in a case of child abuse or neglect that has resulted in a child fatality or near fatality.
Citation: Gen. Laws § 40-11-4
Any person participating in good faith in making a report pursuant to the reporting laws shall have immunity from any civil or criminal liability that might otherwise be incurred or imposed. Any such participant shall have the same immunity with respect to participation in any judicial proceeding resulting from the report.
Citation: Gen. Laws §§ 40-11-3; 40-11-6 Any person who has reasonable cause to know or suspect that a child has been abused, neglected, or sexually abused by another child shall report the information within 24 hours.
A physician or registered nurse practitioner who has cause to suspect that a child is abused or determines that a child under age 12 is suffering from any sexually transmitted disease shall report his or her suspicions to the department. An immediate oral report shall be made by telephone or otherwise, to both the department and law enforcement agency, and shall be followed by a report, in writing, to the department and law enforcement agency explaining the extent and nature of the abuse or neglect the child is alleged to have suffered.
Citation: Gen. Laws § 40-11-6 A written report shall follow the oral report. The written report will explain the extent and nature of the abuse or neglect the child is alleged to have suffered.
Citation: Gen. Laws § 40-11-3.1 Any mandated reporter who has reasonable cause to know or suspect that a child has died as a result of child abuse or neglect shall immediately report that information to the department, which shall cause the report to be investigated immediately. Upon receipt of the report, the department shall immediately refer the information to the local law enforcement agency or the State police as well as to the office of the medical examiner.
The office of the medical examiner shall investigate the report and communicate its preliminary findings, orally within 72 hours, and in writing within 7 working days, to the appropriate law enforcement agency, to the department, and if the person who made the report is an employee or a member of the staff of a hospital, to the hospital.
Citation: Gen. Laws §§ 40-11-3; 40-11-6; Admin. Rules 03-005-001, Policy 500.0000 Reports shall be made to the Department of Children, Youth and Families. Physicians and nurse practitioners shall make reports of suspected sexual abuse to both the department and a law enforcement agency.
In regulation: The department shall maintain a child protective services hotline, a statewide, toll-free phone number, to receive child abuse and neglect reports 24 hours per day, 7 days per week.
Citation: Admin. Rules 03-005-001, Policy 500.0010 The department will investigate when a report that meets investigation criteria is made to the hotline. The report must involve a child younger than age 18 or younger than age 21 if the youth is residing in foster or institutional care or if the youth is in department custody, regardless of placement.
Investigation Criteria 1–Child Abuse/Neglect Reports: The department investigates reports that allege child abuse and/or neglect when reasonable cause to believe that abuse or neglect exists. Reports accepted for investigation contain the following elements:
Harm or substantial risk of harm to the child is present.
A specific incident or pattern of incidents suggests child abuse or neglect.
A person responsible for the child’s welfare, including a parent, guardian, or other caregiver, has allegedly abused or neglected the child.
Investigation Criteria 2–Nonrelative Caregiver: An investigation is initiated when the department receives a report that a parent has assigned or otherwise transferred to a nonrelative his or her rights or duties with respect to the permanent care and custody of his or her child unless the arrangement was authorized by an order of the court. The investigation will determine if the home is suitable for the child.
Investigation Criteria 3–Sexual Abuse of a Child by Another Child: The department immediately will investigate sexual abuse of a child by another child.
Investigation Criteria 4–Duty to Warn: If the hotline receives a report that a perpetrator of sexual abuse or serious physical abuse has access to another child in a family dwelling, that report is assigned for investigation.
Investigation Criteria 5–Alert to Area Hospitals, Safety of Unborn Child: The department issues an alert to area hospitals when a parent has a history of substantiated child abuse/neglect or a child abuse/neglect conviction and there is concern about the safety of a child.
Citation: Gen. Laws § 40-11-7 The department shall investigate reports of child abuse and neglect made under this chapter in accordance with the rules the of the department.
The department shall forward immediately any reports of institutional child abuse and neglect to the child advocate who shall investigate the report. In the event that after investigation the department has reasonable cause to know or suspect that a child has been subjected to criminal abuse or neglect, the department shall forward immediately any information related to that knowledge or suspicion to the law enforcement agency.
Citation: Gen. Laws § 40-11-7; Admin. Rules 03-005-001, Policy 500.0050; 500.0070 The investigation shall determine the circumstances surrounding the alleged abuse or neglect and the cause thereof. The investigation shall include personal contact with the child named in the report and any other children in the same household.
In regulation: The department has established standards for investigating child abuse and/or neglect reports. These standards contain general directives for the handling of all investigations and designate different activities that must be completed. The assessment of the safety of a child is a critical component of a child protective investigation.
The investigation must include personal contact with each child named in the report as well as any other children in the household or child care facility. The investigator must make every effort to locate and interview each child who was residing in the household or present in the child care facility at the time the abuse and/or neglect took place, whether or not the child is the alleged victim.
Assessment of risk is the process by which Child Protective Services (CPS) determines the current safety of a child and the prospects of future harm through abuse or neglect. This assessment process is the focal point of each investigation and is the basis of most investigative decisions. It is an ongoing process that should occur each time a new piece of evidence/information is obtained. Failure to make a thorough and up-to-date assessment could later jeopardize the safety of the child.
Citation: Admin. Rules 03-005-001, Policy 500.0015 Intake workers initially set the response priority for each referral of child abuse or neglect. Response priorities delineate the time limit for the intake workers to process the CPS report and for the initiation of an investigation. Response priorities are categorized into three types:
Emergency Response: The CPS report must be processed within 10 minutes after the call is completed. A child protection investigator (CPI) must respond to the report within 10 minutes of assignment.
Immediate Response: The CPS report must be processed within 1 hour after the call is completed. A CPI must respond to the report within the shift in which the call was received.
Routine Response: The CPS report must be processed within 1 hour after the call is completed. A CPI must respond to the report within 24 hours of assignment. Routine Response criteria are used for all other reports in which there is minimal risk of harm to the child.
Citation: Admin. Rules 003-005-001, Policy 500.0080; 500.0085 The standard of proof to indicate a report of child abuse or neglect is a ‘preponderance of the evidence.’ This is defined as evidence of a greater weight or more convincing than the evidence in opposition to it; that is, evidence that, as a whole, shows that the fact sought to be proved is more probable than not.
A notification will be made to a person who is alleged to have perpetrated abuse and/or neglect upon a child, to inform that person whether the department’s CPS investigation will be ‘indicated’ or ‘unfounded,’ and to identify the allegations that have been ‘indicated’ or ‘unfounded.’
Citation: Gen. Laws § 40-11-6 Any physician or duly certified registered nurse practitioner is required to report.
Citation: Gen. Laws § 40-11-3(a) Any person who has reasonable cause to know or suspect that a child has been abused or neglected must report.
Citation: Gen. Laws §§ 40-11-3(a); 40-11-6 A report is required when:
A person has reasonable cause to know or suspect that a child has been abused or neglected.
A physician or nurse practitioner has cause to suspect that a child brought to them for treatment is an abused or neglected child, or he or she determines that a child under age 12 is suffering from any sexually transmitted disease.
Citation: Gen. Laws § 40-11-11 The privileged quality of communication between husband and wife and any professional person and his or her patient or client, except that between attorney and client, shall not constitute grounds for failure to report.
Citation: Gen. Laws § 40-11-2(1) ‘Abused and/or neglected child’ means a child whose physical or mental health or welfare is harmed or threatened with harm when his or her parent or other person responsible for his or her welfare fails to provide the child with a minimum degree of care or proper supervision or guardianship because of his or her unwillingness or inability to do so by situations or conditions such as, but not limited to, social problems, mental incompetency, or the use of a drug, drugs, or alcohol to the extent that the parent or other person responsible for the child’s welfare loses his or her ability or is unwilling to properly care for the child.
Citation: Gen. Laws § 40-11-14 Any child who is alleged to be abused or neglected as a subject of a petition filed in family court shall have a guardian ad litem (GAL) and/or a court-appointed special advocate (CASA) appointed by the court to represent this child, all in the discretion of the court.
Citation: Gen. Laws § 40-11-14 The court may appoint a CASA to represent the child.
Citation: Gen. Laws § 42-73-7 The child advocate shall provide training and technical assistance to GALs and CASAs appointed by the family court to represent children in proceedings before that court.
Citation: his issue is not addressed in the statutes reviewed.
Citation: Gen. Laws § 42-72-10; Code of Rules 03-007-001, Policy 700.0075 A written service plan for care and treatment shall be prepared for each child under the supervision of the Department of Children, Youth, and Families.
In regulation: A written service plan is required for the care and treatment of each child under the department’s supervision. The service plan must be submitted within 30 days when there is a court finding of dependency, neglect, or abuse on a petition filed by the department.
Subsequent service plans are completed by the assigned primary service worker at 6 month intervals or within 30 days of a change in the permanency goal.
Citation: Code of Rules 03-007-001, Policy 700.0075 The primary service worker will obtain signatures on the service plan to confirm that all parties participated in the development, review, and revision of the plan and were provided the opportunity to agree or disagree with the content. The following individuals must sign the service plan:
Children age 12 or older (with capacity to participate)
Primary service workers and supervisors
Foster parents or provider agency representatives who are involved in the development of the service plan and are directly responsible to provide the services prescribed in the plan
Department staff persons, other than the primary service worker, who are involved with the family
Preadoptive parents in cases in which parental rights have been terminated and the child is in a preadoptive home in which the foster parents have initiated the adoption process
Gen. Laws § 42-72-10; Code of Rules 03-007-001, Policy 700.0075 The service plan shall include, but not be limited to, a statement of the needs of each child and the proposed treatment and placement. If the plan is adoption or placement in another permanent home, the plan shall include documentation of the steps the department is taking to find an adoptive family or other permanent placement and to finalize permanency.
In regulation: A written service plan is required for the care and treatment of each child under the department’s supervision. The plan for the child must include information to determine the appropriateness of for out-of-home placement. In addition, the State must make reasonable efforts to place siblings removed from their home in the same foster care, adoption, or guardianship placement or facilitate visitation or ongoing contacts with those that cannot be placed together, unless it is contrary to the safety or well-being of any of the siblings. The plan must include:
A plan for ensuring that the child receives safe and proper care and that appropriate services are provided
To the extent available and accessible, the child’s health and education records
When appropriate, for a child age 16 or older, a written description of the program and services that will help prepare the youth for the transition toward a self-sufficiency
In the case of a child with respect to whom the permanency plan is adoption, guardianship, or another planned permanent living arrangement, documentation of the steps the agency is taking to find an adoptive family or other permanent living arrangement
The service plan is time-limited, individualized, and strength-based and addresses:
How the family will mobilize their strengths and protective capacities to mitigate behaviors that contributed to child maltreatment
The behavior changes needed to ensure the child’s safety, permanency, and well-being
Action steps that will assist the family to reach the behavior change goal
Each plan includes an educational/medical statement that contains information that must be provided to the foster care provider when a child enters placement. Required information includes:
Name and address of health and educational providers
A plan for educational stability, as follows:
Assurances that the child’s placement takes into account the appropriateness of the current educational setting and the proximity to the school in which the child is enrolled at the time of placement
Assurances that the department has coordinated with appropriate local educational agencies to allow the child to remain in the same school or, if remaining in that school is not in the child’s best interests, assurances that the department and the local educational agencies provide immediate and appropriate enrollment in a new school
Records of the child’s immunizations, known medical problems, and medications
Any other relevant health and education information concerning the child
Each plan includes a permanency goal specific to the family’s situation, including a projected date for achieving the identified permanency goal. For a child remaining at home, the permanency goal is maintenance of the child at home. For a child in placement, the initial permanency goal is reunification in nearly all situations with specific exceptions as approved by the court.
For each child age 16 or older, where appropriate, the service plan must include a written description of the programs and services that will help the youth prepare for the transition from foster care to independence. The plan must address the following:
Education and vocation planning
Procurement of necessary documents and a credit report
Personal community support systems
Citation: R.I. Gen. Laws § 40-11-12.2(g) (LexisNexis through 2012 Sess.) Reasonable efforts to place a child for adoption or with a legal guardian may be made concurrently with reasonable efforts to reunite the family.
Citation: Gen. Laws §§ 40-11-12.1; 40-11-12.2 The department shall conduct a case plan review every 6 months.
Within 12 months of the child’s placement in care and at least every 12 months thereafter
Within 30 days after a finding that reasonable efforts to reunify are not required
Citation: Gen. Laws § 40-11.12.1 At the permanency hearing, all parties shall be allowed to be heard. The foster parents, any preadoptive parent, or relative providing care for the child shall be provided with notice of the hearing and may attend and present a report, oral or written, containing recommendations as to the best interests of the child. Such opportunity to be heard does not require that any foster parent, preadoptive parent, or relative providing care for the child be made a party to a review or hearing.
Citation: Gen. Laws § 40-11.12.1 At the permanency hearing, the court shall determine:
The appropriateness of the Department of Children, Youth and Families’ plan for service to the child and parent(s)
What services have been offered to strengthen and reunify the family
What efforts have been or should be made to evaluate or plan for other modes of care if return home of the child is not likely
Any further efforts that will promote the best interests of the child
Citation: Gen. Laws §§ 40-11-12.1; 40-11-12.2 Permanency options include:
Placement in another planned permanent living arrangement in cases for which the department has documented a compelling reason why another permanency option would not be in the best interests of the child
Citation: Gen. Laws § 15-7-7(c) In considering the termination of rights, the court shall give primary consideration to the physical, psychological, mental, and intellectual needs of the child insofar as that consideration is not inconsistent with other provisions of this chapter.
The consideration shall include the following: If a child has been placed in foster family care, voluntarily or involuntarily, the court shall determine whether the child has been integrated into the foster family to the extent that the child’s familial identity is with the foster family and whether the foster family is able and willing to permanently integrate the child into the foster family; provided, that in considering integrating into a foster family, the court should consider:
The length of time the child has lived in a stable, satisfactory environment and the desirability of maintaining that environment and continuity for the child
The reasonable preference of the child, if the court determines that the child has sufficient capacity to express a reasonable preference
Citation: Gen. Laws § 42-72-2(1)-(2) The State finds and declares that:
Parents have the primary responsibility for meeting the needs of their children, and the State has an obligation to help them discharge this responsibility or to assume this responsibility when parents are unable to do so.
The State has a basic obligation to promote, safeguard, and protect the social well-being and development of the children of the State through a comprehensive program providing for:
Social services and facilities for children who require guidance, care, control, protection, treatment, or rehabilitation
A permanent home and safe environment for children, services to children and their families to prevent the unnecessary removal of children from their homes, and foster care and services to children with special needs who must be removed from their families to meet their particular needs
The strengthening of the family unit and making the home safe for children by enhancing the parental capacity for good child care
Citation: Gen. Laws § 15-7-7 The court shall terminate any and all legal rights of the parent to the child if it finds as a fact by clear and convincing evidence that:
Citation: Admin. Rules 03-240-802, Policy 900.0025 Relative is defined as:
Grandparent, including step-grandparent, great-grandparent, or adoptive grandparent
Sibling; including half-brother, half-sister, stepbrother, stepsister, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, adoptive brother, or adoptive sister
Uncle or aunt of whole- or half-blood, including uncle-in-law, aunt-in-law, great-uncle, or great-aunt
First and second cousins, including cousin of whole- or half-blood or first and second cousins-in-law
Nephew or niece, including nephew or niece of whole- or half-blood, nephew-in-law, niece-in-law, great-nephew, or great-niece
Relatives of the putative father will be considered if his name appears on the child’s birth certificate, he has admitted paternity in a court of proper jurisdiction, or he has signed an affidavit of paternity.
Spouses of any of the persons listed above continue to meet this relationship requirement even after the marriage is terminated by death or divorce.
Citation: Admin. Code 03-007-001, Policy 700.0245 The Department of Children, Youth and Families utilizes a family driven and youth guided approach in developing an individualized, culturally sensitive family plan that addresses health, safety, and well-being when making permanency decisions. Federal and State law and department policy recognize legal guardianship as an important permanency option when family reunification, termination of parental rights, or adoption does not meet the child’s permanency needs.
Legal guardianship provides the caregiver with the opportunity to provide a safe and stable environment for the child without terminating parental rights and provides a permanency option for older children who do not want to be adopted. Legal guardianship provides the child with a sense of belonging, and placement with members of the family support system maintains consistency in a child’s life and helps decrease placement trauma.
Legal guardianship recognizes the tradition in many cultures of caring for related children without changing family relationships.
Citation: Admin. Code 03-007-001, Policy 700.0245 Legal guardianship provides the caregiver with the legal authority to make decisions on behalf of the child and the ability to care for the child without child welfare agency intervention.
Citation: Admin. Rules 03-240-802, Policy 900.0025 In assessing a kinship care home, issues of child safety and well-being are of utmost importance. Careful and sensitive assessments must be made of kinship care homes with particular attention to the following areas:
The child’s comfort level with the kinship caregiver
The caregiver’s commitment to protecting the child’s health and safety, and their willingness and ability to protect the child from abuse and neglect, whether by the parents or others
Whether the relationship between the caregiver and the parent is positive
The caregiver’s willingness to care for the child as long as may be needed
Whether the kinship caregiver knows the child well and is physically healthy enough to care for the child
Whether the kinship placement will be able to keep siblings together, or, at the least, allow them regular contact
If the department determines that the relative is a fit and proper person to have placement of the child, taking into account any particular needs of the child and the child’s best interests, then the child shall be placed with that relative.
All kinship care placements must be licensed and are subject to criminal records checks, including fingerprinting, and the same licensing standards and foster parent training that apply to a nonrelative foster home. Under certain circumstances, a waiver may be granted for a non-safety related licensing requirements.
Citation: Admin. Code 03-007-001, Policy 700.0245 The family court may grant a petition for legal guardianship initiated by the department for a child in the department’s care. The petition contains the written consent of the parent who previously had custody of the child and the department. The granting of legal guardianship terminates department custody, the involvement of the department with the child, and the department’s involvement with the child’s parents as it relates to that child.
Citation: Admin. Code 03-007-001, Policy 700.0245 The court may revoke a legal guardianship if the court finds after hearing on a motion for revocation that continuation of the legal guardianship is not in the best interests of the child. Notice of any hearing on such motion is provided by the moving party to the department, the court-appointed special advocate, the parent or legal guardian, and any and all other interested parties.
Citation: Gen. Laws § 40-11-12.3; Admin. Code 03-007-001, Policy 700.0245 The State may make funds available through the department for special reimbursement to guardians appointed pursuant to this chapter. These funds will be disbursed in accordance with the guidelines to be promulgated by the department.
In regulation: The child is eligible for title IV-E kinship guardianship assistance if:
The child has been removed from home pursuant to a voluntary placement agreement or as a result of a judicial determination that continuation in the home would be contrary to the welfare of the child, and the child is eligible for title IV-E foster care maintenance payments while residing for at least 6 consecutive months in the home of the prospective legal guardian.
The child demonstrates a strong attachment to the prospective legal guardian, and the legal guardian has a strong commitment to caring permanently for the child.
A child who is age 14 or older has been consulted regarding the legal guardianship arrangement.
The child and any sibling of the child may be placed in the same legal guardianship arrangement if the department and the guardian agree on the appropriateness of the arrangement for the siblings. Kinship guardianship assistance payments may be paid on behalf of each sibling placed with that legal guardian. The sibling does not have to meet the eligibility criteria above to be eligible for assistance.
The department provides kinship guardianship assistance payments on behalf of children to grandparents and other kinship caregivers who assume legal guardianship of children they have cared for as foster parents and have committed to care for permanently. Assistance payments cannot exceed the foster care maintenance payment that would have been paid on behalf of the child as if the child remained in a foster family home.
Rhode Island Department of Children, Youth and Families:
Policy #700.0245, Legal Guardianship and Kinship Guardianship Assistance (PDF – 47 KB)
Policy # 900.0025, Kinship Care (PDF – 75 KB)
Citation: Gen. Laws § 40-11-12.2; Code of Rules § 03-000-021; 03-009-001 Prior to the placement of a child in foster care, reasonable efforts shall be made to prevent or eliminate the need for removing the child from the child’s home, which efforts shall include placement of the child with a blood relative or other family member if such placement is in the best interests of the child.
In regulation: A kinship foster parent is an adult head of household, also referred to as caregiver, who is granted a license by the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) to provide foster care for a related child in care or a child with whom the adult has a kinship bond. The kinship foster parent may be a relative or a member of the child’s family support system, such as a godparent, close family friend, or member of the child’s community. There may be one or two kinship foster parents in the household.
DCYF gives utmost consideration to placing a child in a relative or kinship foster home prior to seeking a nonrelative placement.
Citation: Code of Rules § 03-000-021 Prospective foster and adoptive parents are subject to the same licensing process, including screening, interview, home study, training, and background checks. The Foster Care and Adoption License allows a licensed caregiver to transition to or from the role of foster or adoptive parent without requiring a new home study or additional training. The application process is similar for both kinship and nonkinship providers.
DCYF provides monthly foster maintenance payments to kinship homes pending licensing as soon as background clearances, including nationwide fingerprint checks, are received for a period not to exceed 6 months from the date of placement. If the home is not licensed within this timeframe, the foster maintenance payment may be terminated. Foster care maintenance payments for a child in care may cover the cost of providing food, clothing, shelter, daily supervision, school supplies, a child’s personal incidentals, liability insurance with respect to the child, reasonable travel to the child’s home for visits with family or other caregivers, and reasonable travel for the child to remain in the school in which the child is enrolled at the time of placement.
Citation: Code of Rules § 03-007-001; 03-009-001 Siblings who are placed in foster care should maintain contact with each other to have continuity in their relationships, as follows:
Sibling visits should be seen as part of the overall case plan
Sibling visits are an integral part of the assessment of family relationships and the determination of the feasibility of established goals.
The determination of the appropriateness of continued sibling visits is independent of the proceeding for termination of parental rights.
It is the policy of DCYF to provide the child with an out-of-home placement that is least disruptive to the child and family, including placing siblings together, unless the serious specific needs of one or more child justifies separation. This policy offers the child the most familiar and familylike setting possible, and encourages and promotes stability and permanency for the child.
Citation: Gen. Laws § 15-7-2 Whenever a parent places his or her child for adoption with a person other than a father, brother, sister, aunt, uncle, grandparent, or stepparent, the person with whom the child has been placed shall, within 15 days of the placement, notify DCYF of the placement.
Citation: Gen. Laws §§ 15-7-2.1; 15-7-11 The requirement for a preplacement report on the child does not apply to a stepparent adoption or the adoption of a child related to the petitioner by marriage, blood, or adoption.
Upon the filing of a petition for adoption, the court shall notify DCYF. It shall then be the duty of the department to conduct the appropriate investigation to determine whether the proposed adoptive home is a suitable home for the child. If the child was placed for adoption by a licensed child-placing agency, the court may accept the home study report of the agency as long as the study includes any criminal record of the prospective adoptive parent.
The home study report shall include a nationwide criminal records check. This requirement may, in the discretion of the court, be waived in the case of a petition for the adoption of a child where the child is the natural child of one of the parties petitioning for the adoption and resides with the petitioning parties.
Citation: Gen. Laws § 40-11-12.2 Reasonable efforts are measures taken to preserve and reunify families.
Citation: Gen. Laws § 40-11-12.2 Reasonable efforts must be made:
Prior to placement of a child in foster care to prevent or eliminate the need for removing the child from the home that may include placement of the child with a relative
If continuation of efforts is determined to be inconsistent with the permanency plan for the child, to place the child in a timely manner and finalize a permanent placement
Citation: Gen. Laws § 40-11-12.2 Reasonable efforts are not required if a court determines that:
The parent has subjected any child to conduct of a cruel and abusive nature.
Committed murder of another child of the parent
Subjected the child to aggravating circumstances, including abandonment, torture, chronic abuse, or sexual abuse
Committed voluntary manslaughter of another child of the parent or attempted to commit such crime
Committed a felony assault that results in serious bodily injury of the child or another child of the parent
The parent’s parental rights to a sibling of the child have been terminated involuntarily.
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