Opinion ID: 2367407
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Heading: Ronald R.: Municipal Liability for Expenses.

Text: On February 11, 1980, the Keene District Court ( Davis, J.) found Ronald R. to be a neglected child and placed him in the temporary custody of the New Hampshire Division of Welfare. See RSA 169-C:19, I(b) (Supp. 1981). The City of Keene, as the legally liable unit, was ordered to pay Ronald R.'s expenses. See RSA 169-C:27, I (Supp. 1982). Shortly thereafter, a delinquency petition was filed against Ronald R. in Keene District Court, and on May 22, 1980, after several unsuccessful placements in foster homes, Ronald R. was temporarily placed at the Rivendell School in Loudon pending an adjudicatory hearing on the delinquency petition, scheduled for September 1980. See RSA 169-B:14 (Supp. 1981). The City of Keene agreed that it was the liable unit during that period. There is no indication in the record before us that this delinquency petition was ever acted upon. On June 26, 1980, Ronald R.'s mother, who had had custody of him for a number of years before February 11 of that year, moved to Concord. That same day, while still residing at the Rivendell School, Ronald R. and others were involved in a burglary in Loudon, which brought him into Concord District Court on a new delinquency petition. On October 27, 1980, the Concord District Court ( Robbins, J.) adjudicated Ronald R. delinquent and returned him temporarily to the Rivendell School pending commitment to the YDC for the term of his minority. See RSA 169-B:19, I(i) (Supp. 1982). The City of Keene was continued as the legally liable unit. After a financial liability hearing, the district court held on November 6, 1980, that the fact that Ronald R.'s mother had moved from Keene to Concord, prior to the filing of the latest delinquency petition, was not dispositive as to which city was the legally liable unit. The court found that Ronald R. was a resident of Keene at the time he was placed at the Rivendell School under the custody of the division of welfare, and thus the City of Keene should continue to pay for Ronald R.'s expenses. The Rivendell School subsequently filed a petition in Concord District Court to compel the City of Keene to pay $9,600 for Ronald R.'s expenses, contending that the school should not have to wait for the city to be indemnified by some other governmental unit before it was paid. These consolidated liability issues are before this court on an interlocutory appeal. [6] The City of Keene contests its liability to the Rivendell School for Ronald R.'s expenses on two grounds. First, the city asserts that the mingling of delinquent children with CHINS and abused or neglected children at Rivendell precluded Ronald R.'s temporary placement there as a neglected child by the Keene District Court, or his temporary placement there as a delinquent child by the Concord District Court. Our holding in the case of John M. and David C., that RSA 169-B:19, I(f) (Supp. 1981) is directory only, is dispositive of that issue in this case. Second, the City of Keene argues that, because Ronald R.'s mother had moved from Keene to Concord before the delinquency petition against him was filed in Concord District Court, it should not be liable for Ronald R.'s expenses at the Rivendell School. The community that is legally liable for the expenses incurred pursuant to a dispositional order of delinquency or neglect is that in which the minor resides at the time the petition is filed . . . . RSA 169-B:40, I (Supp. 1982); 169-C:27, I (Supp. 1982); see RSA 169-D:29, I (Supp. 1982). While it is true that the words `residence' and `resides' are slippery words having many meanings, Ebelt v. Ebelt, 103 N.H. 369, 371, 172 A.2d 363, 365 (1961), in the context of the liability provisions of the State's juvenile laws it is clear that, at the time of the petition of neglect in Keene District Court and the delinquency petition in Concord District Court, Ronald R. resided with his mother, who had had legal custody of him before he was temporarily placed in State custody. In its neglect order of February 11, 1980, the Keene District Court stated: Custody of [Ronald R. is] to remain with the Division of Welfare until such time as [this] Court deems it appropriate to return custody of [him] to [his] mother. Because custody of Ronald R. might have been returned to his mother, he is deemed to have resided with her at all times for the purpose of determining liability under RSA 169-B:40, I (Supp. 1982). See RSA 21:6-a (Supp. 1981). Consequently, the location of her residence will determine which community must bear Ronald R.'s expenses at the Rivendell School. The City of Keene is liable for expenses incurred pursuant to the Keene District Court's order of May 22, 1980, temporarily placing Ronald R., as a neglected child, at the Rivendell School. See RSA 169-C:27, I (Supp. 1982). The duration of that order at the most could only have been until September 4, 1980, the date set for an adjudicatory hearing on the delinquency petition that had been filed in Keene District Court on April 9, 1980. As noted above, the record before us does not indicate whether that petition was ever acted upon. [7] During Ronald R.'s temporary placement at the Rivendell School, his mother moved to Concord, he was involved in a burglary in Loudon, and a delinquency petition was filed against him in Concord District Court on July 1, 1980. That court subsequently adjudicated Ronald R. delinquent. The City of Keene thus would not be the legally liable unit pursuant to RSA 169-B:40, I (Supp. 1982) for expenses incurred as a result of any Concord District Court order because Ronald R.'s mother was living in the Concord area before the petition against her son was filed on July 1, 1980. Accordingly, Ronald R.'s expenses at the Rivendell School must be apportioned between the City of Keene, which is liable for pre-July 1 expenses, and the city or town of residence of Ronald R.'s mother after she moved from Keene, which is liable for all post-July 1 expenses. [8] The Rivendell School petitioned the Concord District Court for an order compelling the City of Keene to pay $9,600 prior to the completion of any indemnification action, for expenses incurred in the maintenance and care of Ronald R. When the legislature amended the juvenile laws to place the financial responsibility of any placement initially on the town and not on the parents, it clearly indicated that the guarantee of adequate care of problem juveniles depends upon prompt payment by the legally liable unit. See Ebelt v. Ebelt, 103 N.H. at 371, 172 A.2d at 365; Harkaway, Bianco, Leidinger, and Barry, New Hampshire Juvenile Justice Code of 1979: An Overview, 21 N.H.B.J. at 62, 77. On remand, then, the City of Keene, and the city or town which is found to be the appropriate legally liable unit for Ronald R.'s post-July 1 expenses, must pay the expenses and then pursue any claims for reimbursement. [9] We note that the legislature has provided for two additional sources of recovery. Effective March 17, 1982, either the town or city of settlement of the custodial parent or parents, or the county in which the custodial parent or parents reside if they do not have a settlement, will be ultimately liable for the expenses of placing problem children. RSA 169-B:40, I (Supp. 1982); 169-C:27, I (Supp. 1982); 169-D:29, I (Supp. 1982). This means that for expenses incurred after March 17, 1982, for the first time a city or town of residence may now seek reimbursement from a city or town of settlement. The statutory amendment merely continues the right of a city or town of residence to seek reimbursement from a county if the parent has no settlement, but expressly provides for that right of indemnification without reference to the State's general welfare laws. [10] For expenses incurred prior to March 17, 1982, recovery can only be sought against the person chargeable by law for the minor's support and necessities. Given this express statutory amendment and a fair reading of the word person, we hold that a city or town of residence may not seek reimbursement from a city or town of settlement for expenses incurred under RSA chapters 169-B, 169-C and 169-D prior to March 17, 1982. As will be explained in the next section, a city or town of residence may seek recovery from a county, under the State's general welfare laws, for such expenses predating the statutory amendment.