Opinion ID: 2386399
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Examination Procedure.

Text: 1. Order for Examination. Any order for a physical or mental examination pursuant to Section 3-818 of the Courts Article shall specify the time, place, manner, conditions and scope of the examination and the person or persons by whom it is to be made. The court shall order that the examination be conducted on an outpatient basis if, considering the child's condition, that is feasible and appropriate. The order may regulate the filing of a report of findings and conclusions and the testimony at a hearing by the examining physician, psychiatrist, psychologist or other professionally qualified person, the payment of the expenses of the examination and any other relevant matters. 2. Service of Copies of Report. Copies of all studies and reports of examinations made to the court under this Rule shall be furnished by the court to counsel for the parties when received by the court, but not later than two days before any hearing at which the results of the examinations will be offered in evidence. b. Use of Report. The report of examination is admissible in evidence as set forth in Section 3-818 of the Courts Article. Md. Rules 11-105 (2001). Section 3-818 of the Courts and Judicial Proceedings Article states as follows: (a) In general. After a petition or a citation has been filed, the court may direct the Department of Juvenile Justice or another qualified agency to make a study concerning the child, his family, his environment, and other matters relevant to the disposition of the case. (b) Examination by professionally qualified person. As part of the study, the child or any parent, guardian, or custodian may be examined at a suitable place by a physician, psychiatrist, psychologist, or other professionally qualified person. (c) Admissibility; inspection; impeachment evidence. The report of the study is admissible as evidence at a waiver hearing and at a disposition hearing, but not at an adjudicatory hearing. However, the attorney for each party has the right to inspect the report prior to its presentation to the court, to challenge or impeach its findings and to present appropriate evidence with respect to it. Maryland Code, § 3-818 of the Courts and Judicial Proceedings Article (1974, 1998 Repl.Vol.). Rule 11-105 and Section 3-818 are silent with regard to independent medical examinations other than those made by the State at the direction of the court, or by the court's order sua sponte. Section 3-818 was derived from the Maryland Code, Art. 26, § 62 (1951), which states, The Judge may cause any person within the jurisdiction of the Court ... to be examined by a physician, psychiatrist or psychologist as designated by him. This provision was amended by Chapter 432, § 2 of the Maryland Laws of 1969 to read as follows: (a) After a petition has been filed, and at such time as the court may direct, a study and report to the court in writing shall be made by a probation officer or a qualified agency designated by the court, concerning the child, his family, his environment, and other matters relevant to the disposition of the case. (b) If the allegations of the petition are denied, the study and report shall not be made and furnished to the court until the court makes a finding with respect to the allegations in the petition. (c) As part of such study, the child or any parent, guardian, or custodian may be examined at a suitable place by a physician, psychiatrist, psychologist, or other professionally qualified person. Maryland Code, Art. 26, § 70-14 (1957, 1969 Cum.Supp.). This provision was amended and recodified by Chapter 691 of the Maryland Laws of 1974 to change subsection (a) to read, ... to make a study concerning the child, his family, and his environment, and other matters relevant to the disposition of the case and submit the report to the court in writing. Maryland Code, § 3-827 of the Courts and Judicial Proceedings Article (1974). The language concerning the production of a written report inserted into the statute through the 1974 amendments required subsequent revisions to the statute concerning the disposition of such evidence at various types of hearings within Maryland's juvenile justice system. Chapter 554 of the Maryland Laws of 1975 removed the language concerning a probation officer from subsection (a), and replaced it with the Juvenile Services Administration, as well as inserting the following: The report of the study is admissible as evidence at a waiver hearing and at a disposition hearing, but not at an adjudicatory hearing. However, the attorney for each party has the right to inspect the report prior to its presentation to the court, to challenge or impeach its findings, and to present appropriate evidence with respect to it. Maryland Code, § 3-818(a) of the Courts and Judicial Proceedings Article (1974, 1975 Supp.). Subsequently, this language concerning the admissibility in evidence of the report of a study conducted pursuant to Section 3-818 was moved from subsection (a) to a separate provision at subsection (c). [7] See 1982 Md. Laws, ch. 844. Throughout its numerous revisions, the statute continued to provide that independent medical examinations may be conducted on a child, parent, guardian, or custodian identified with a cause of action in the juvenile court. Section 3-818(a) authorizes the court to direct the Department of Juvenile Justice, or in the case at bar, the DHHS to make a study ... relevant to the disposition of the case. The statute does not vest the State with the sole authority to conduct an investigation; rather it leaves the question of whether a study should be conducted up to the court's discretion. See § 3-818(a). The only limitation placed on who may perform independent medical examinations, which may be a part of the study, is that those persons be professionally qualified to conduct such examinations. See § 3-818(b). Because Section 3-818 does not specifically exclude parties other than the State in juvenile court actions from seeking an independent medical examination of the child, we turn to the purposes of the juvenile causes statute to ascertain whether such examinations would be consistent with the legislative framework for juvenile causes. With regard to children who are determined to be children in need of assistance, the legislature has empowered the juvenile justice system [t]o provide for the care, protection and wholesome mental and physical development of children ... and to provide for a program of treatment, training, and rehabilitation consistent with the child's best interests and the protection of the public interest. Maryland Code, § 3-802(a)(4) of the Courts and Judicial Proceedings Article (1974, 1998 Repl. Vol.). We have explained that an individual's interest in raising his or her own child is so fundamental ... it may not be taken away unless clearly justified. In re Adoption No. 10941, 335 Md. at 112, 642 A.2d at 208. Thus, the statute attempts [t]o conserve and strengthen the child's family ties and to separate a child from his parents only when necessary for his welfare or in the interest of public safety. Code, § 3-802(a)(5) of the Courts and Judicial Proceedings Article. In keeping with the goals of protecting children in need of the court's assistance and acting in the child's best interests while not unjustifiably infringing on the parent's interest in raising the child, Section 3-818 does not restrict the court from hearing a motion from an interested party to the action requesting an independent medical examination of the child. While it is the role of the parties's advocates, not the juvenile court, to develop the factual record in the case before it, Section 3-818 allows the court the flexibility to grant an order for an independent medical examination of the child. The question remains, however, as to the appropriate procedure to be followed by an interested party who requests an examination pursuant to Section 3-818. In the context of civil cases, the burden rests with the party requesting the examination to show good cause why the motion for a mental or physical examination should be granted and to provide notice to the person to be examined as well as to the other parties involved in the litigation. [8] See Md. Rule 2-423; Turner v. Whisted, 327 Md. 106, 113-14, 607 A.2d 935, 939 (1992)(considering the privacy interests of the birth mother and her husband and the interests of the man seeking a paternity determination by a motion for a blood test of the child); Miles v. Stovall, 132 Md. App. 71, 82-83, 750 A.2d 729, 735 (2000) (explaining that the court must exercise its discretion in determining whether the party seeking a blood test for paternity made a showing of good cause, and must consider the best interests of the child). Noting that protection of the child is a paramount concern in CINA actions, we hold that motions for independent medical examinations may be made by a parent or other party in a CINA proceeding, in addition to the state. We also hold that when making a motion to compel a physical or mental examination of a child pursuant to Section 3-818 of the Courts and Judicial Proceedings Article, the party making the motion must demonstrate good cause for such an examination. The examination should be reasonably calculated to assist the trier of fact in rendering its decision. See Tolen v. State, 59 Md.App. 625, 639, 477 A.2d 797, 805, cert. denied, 301 Md. 639, 484 A.2d 274 (1984)(upholding the trial court's decision to refuse to order that a rape victim undergo a subsequent physical examination to test her blood for the presence of alcohol or drugs as the request came months after the alleged incident and would have been utterly irrelevant as to the issue of the victim's potential intoxication at the time of the alleged criminal conduct). The party also must show that the proposed examination will not be harmful to the child. See In re John M., 129 Md.App. 165, 741 A.2d 503 (1999). In John M., the Court of Special Appeals upheld a juvenile court's decision to deny John M's motion to compel the examinations of his two young female cousins whom he had allegedly sexually assaulted. See id. at 191, 741 A.2d at 517. In reaching this decision, the juvenile court stated: I regard that there is a danger that exists, that a new therapist, a different therapist, probing into the areas of what happened to these little girls, potentially and unintentionally could upset the current therapy. And after all, money aside, rehabilitation of the Respondent aside, it seems to me that we should not in any way, inhibit, obstruct or destroy the ongoing therapy that these children are in.    And I, I have a great concern, that in the course of probing, into the issues, uh... in this case, a therapist could unintentionally disturb the current therapy, or upset the child. And obviously these are areas, when you're involved in the sexual abuse of a five and six year old child, which these children currently are, it's a very delicate situation. And it involves the rest of their lives. Id. at 190, 741 A.2d at 517. In the matter before us, Dr. Lazun, Mark M.'s therapist, testified at the October 1, 1999 hearing and expressed a serious concern regarding Mark M.'s fragile mental state and his ability to interact with his mother. He described incidents during Mark M.'s treatment where Mark M. expressed his fear and anger towards his mother, and testified that if Mark M. were to have to see his mother at that time it would cause a regression in his treatment and thwart the progress that had been made in Mark M.'s therapy. Counsel for Helen M. made an oral motion at this hearing to have Mark M. evaluated by a qualified child psychologist, not affiliated with DHHS, to explore whether his mother could visit Mark M. The juvenile court denied the independent medical examination of Mark M. based solely on the evaluations provided by Dr. Lazun and DHHS. As a result, the mother did not have any ability to challenge the purported findings of Dr. Lazun. On the other hand, Helen M. did not provide the court with the name and credentials of the therapist whom she would employ to conduct the independent medical examination of Mark M., and she did not provide any means to assure that such an examination would not be harmful to Mark M. We agree with the Court of Special Appeals that in her oral motion, Helen M. had failed to make a proper showing of a need for an independent medical examination of Mark M. We find, therefore, that the juvenile court did not abuse its discretion in denying Helen M.'s request for an independent medical examination of Mark M. Upon remand, Helen M., should have the opportunity to advocate for an independent medical examination if she so chooses, but must provide the data specified, and the court must balance the protection of Mark M. against Helen M.'s needs for the examination. The juvenile court must be specific in its decision to either grant or deny the motion for an independent medical examination of the child. JUDGMENT OF THE COURT OF SPECIAL APPEALS REVERSED. CASE REMANDED TO THAT COURT WITH INSTRUCTIONS TO REVERSE THE ORDER OF THE DISTRICT COURT OF MARYLAND, JUVENILE DIVISION, AND REMAND THE CASE TO THAT COURT FOR FURTHER PROCEEDINGS CONSISTENT WITH THIS OPINION. COSTS IN THIS COURT AND IN THE COURT OF SPECIAL APPEALS TO BE PAID BY RESPONDENT.