Missouri Code of State Regulations › Title 13 - DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES › Division 35 - Children's Division › Chapter 31 - Child Abuse › Section 13 CSR 35-31.010 - Definitions

Current through Register Vol. 49, No. 14, July 15, 2024
PURPOSE: This rule establishes definitions pertaining to
				  investigations and assessments conducted pursuant to Chapter 210, RSMo.
(1) The Children's Division shall use the
				definitions set forth below when conducting investigations and assessments
				pursuant to Chapter 210, RSMo.
(A) "Emotional
				abuse" is any injury to a child's psychological capacity or emotional stability
				demonstrated by an observable or substantial change or impairment in the
				child's behavior, emotional response, or cognition, which may include, but is
				not limited to: anxiety, depression, withdrawal, or aggressive behavior; and
				which may be established by either lay or expert witnesses.
(B) "Physical injury" includes any bruising,
				lacerations, hematomas, welts, permanent or temporary disfigurement; loss, or
				impairment of any bodily function or organ, which may be accompanied by
				physical pain, illness, or impairment of the child's physical
				condition;
(C) "Proper or necessary
				support" includes adequate food, clothing, shelter, medical care, or other care
				and control necessary to provide for the child's physical, mental, or emotional
				health or development.
(D) "Sexual
				abuse" is any sexual or sexualized interaction with a child, except as
				otherwise provided in paragraph 2. below.
1.
				Sexual abuse shall include, but is not limited to:
A. Any touching of the genitals, anus or
				buttocks of a child, or the breast of a female child, or any such touching
				through the clothing; any act involving the genitals of a child and the hand,
				mouth, tongue, or anus of another person; or any sexual act involving the
				penetration, however slight, of a child's mouth, penis, female genitalia, or
				anus by any body part of another person, or by any instrument or
				object;
B. Any conduct that would
				constitute a violation, regardless of arrest or conviction, of Chapter 566,
				RSMo if the victim is less than eighteen (18) years of age, section
				567.050,
				RSMo if the victim is less than eighteen (18) years of age, sections
				568.020,
				568.060,
				568.080,
				or 568.090, RSMo, sections
				573.025,
				573.035,
				573.037,
				or 573.040, RSMo, or an attempt to commit any of the preceding
				crimes;
C. Sexual exploitation of
				the child, which shall include:
(I) Allowing,
				permitting, or encouraging a child to engage in prostitution, as defined by
				state law; or
(II) Allowing,
				permitting, encouraging, or engaging in the obscene or pornographic
				photographing, filming, or depicting of a child as those acts are defined by
				state law. This includes the storage or transmission of any data depicting said
				obscene or pornographic acts, images, or recordings.
2. Any reasonable interaction with
				a child, including touching a child's body for the purpose of providing the
				proper or necessary care or support of the child, shall not be considered
				sexual abuse. The touching of a child's body, including a child's genitals,
				buttocks, anus, or breasts for reasonable, medical, child rearing, or child
				care purposes shall not be considered sexual abuse.
3. The division shall not be required to
				prove that the alleged perpetrator received sexual gratification or that there
				was an exchange or promise of anything of value as a result of the act of
				sexual abuse to establish sexual abuse under Chapter 210 or 211,
				RSMo.
4. The use of force or
				coercion is not a necessary element for a finding of sexual abuse.
5. Sexual abuse may occur over or under the
				child's clothes.
6. The division
				shall not be required to prove that the child suffered trauma or harm as a
				result of the act of sexual abuse.
7. A child cannot consent to a sexual or
				sexualized act or interaction with a person responsible for that child's care,
				custody, and control.