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Students 5141.6-AR |
CHILD ABUSE REPORTING
A. Purpose and Scope
To standardize legal and district
requirements and procedures for reporting suspected child abuse.
B. General
1. Definitions
a. “Child” means a person under the age of
18 years. Emancipation does not alter
the responsibility for reporting abuse of a minor under the California Penal
Code.
b. “Dependent adult” means any person
between the ages of 18 and 64 who has physi
c. “Sexual abuse” means sexual assault or
sexual exploitation.
d. “Neglect” means situations where any
person having
e. “Unjustifiable punishment” refers to
situations where any person willfully
f. “Child abuse” means a physi
g.
“Abuse
of a dependent adult” means physical abuse, sexual abuse, neglect,
intimidation, cruel punishment, fiduciary abuse, or other treatment with
resulting physical harm or pain or mental suffering, or the deprivation by a
care custodian of goods or services which are necessary to avoid physical harm
or mental suffering.
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Students 5141.6-AR |
h. “Emotional maltreatment” consists of
emotional abuse and emotional deprivation or neglect. Emotional abuse is willful cruelty or
unjustifiable punishment of a child.
Emotional deprivation or neglect is “the deprivation suffered by
children when their parents do not provide the normal experiences producing
feelings of being loved, wanted, secure and worthy.”
i. “Mandated reporters of suspected child
abuse” include: a teacher,
administrator, supervisor of child welfare and attendance or certificated pupil
personnel employee of any public or private school; an administrator of a
public or private day camp, or an employee of a community care facility
licensed to care for children, instructional aide, a teacher’s aide or
teacher’s assistant employed by any public or private school, any classified
employee of the school district, a Head Start teacher, any employee of a county
office of education or the California Department of Education, whose duties bring the employee
into contact with children on a regular basis.
j. “Child protective agency” means a
police or sheriff’s department, a county probation department, or a county
welfare department.
k. “Elder abuse registry” means a county
elder abuse agency or a local law enforcement agency.
l. “Instruction” refers to either formal
or informal staff development activities which present information and
instruction concerning physical and behavioral indicators of abuse, community
resources and appropriate reporting procedures, rights and responsibilities
regarding reporting, specific site procedures to facilitate reporting, and
caring for a child’s needs after a report is made.
m. “Reasonable suspicion” means that it is
objectively reasonable for a person to entertain such a suspicion, based upon
facts or allegations that could
2. Reporting Obligation.
a. A mandated reporter shall make a report
to the police or sheriff’s department, or the county welfare department
whenever the mandated reporter, in his or her professional
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Students 5141.6-AR |
The mandated reporter shall make a report to
the agency (see below) immediately or as soon as is practically possible by
telephone, and the mandated reporter shall prepare and send a written report
there of within 36 hours of receiving the information concerning the
incident. The mandated reporter may
include with the report any non-privileged documentary evidence the mandated
reporter possesses relating to the incident.
This obligation is an individual duty to
report any suspected instance of child abuse.
This individual responsibility cannot be impeded, or inhibited by an
employee’s administrator or supervisor nor may any person be subject to
sanctions of any kind for making such a report.
b. Appropriate agency: All known or suspected incidents of child
abuse shall be reported immediately to the Child Abuse Registry. Lo
Child
Abuse Registry,
(714)
940-1000
(877)
477-3646
Anaheim
Police Department
Emergency: 765-1911
Business: 765-1900
Brea
Police Department
1
Civic Center Circle
Emergency: 990-7911
Business: 990-7625
Fullerton
Police Department
237
Emergency: 738-6700
Business: 738-6800
Placentia
Police Department
Emergency: 993-8111
Business: 993-8164
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Students 5141.6-AR |
c. Liability:
(1) No designated child care custodian
reporting a suspected instance of child abuse who is mandated under provisions
of the law or Board Policy shall be civilly or criminally liable for any such
reports, unless it can be proven that a false report was made and the person
knew that the report was false.
(2) Any person mandated by the Penal Code
who fails to report an instance of child abuse which he/she knows or suspects
to exist is guilty of a misdemeanor and faces the possibility of personal civil
liability.
C. Forms Used and
Additional References
1. Release to Law Enforcement Agency Form
(exhibit 1)
2. Department of Justice Form #SS 8572
(exhibit 2)
3. Agency Resources for Child Abuse
(exhibit 3)
D. Procedures
1. Reporting Guidelines
a. When having suspicion of suspected
child abuse or neglect, a mandated reporter shall immediately report the
suspected child abuse to the Child Abuse Registry (Department of Social
Services) by telephone. The person
making the report shall have all pertinent information available prior to
placing the report (i.e. child’s name, address, telephone number, date of
birth).
b. The person making the report shall
document the time the call was made, the contact person’s name, title or
position, and the response or directive given.
The reporting person shall immediately notify the site administrator or
his/her designee of the report.
c. Although the reporting obligation is an
individual one, local school site plans may be developed to facilitate
implementation of the legally required reporting process. This plan might include designating a
particular staff member (i.e. nurse, principal, psychologist, counselor, etc.)
to assist other employees in fulfilling the reporting requirements. These internal procedures shall in no way
inhibit the reporting of suspected instances of child abuse.
A mandated reporter may not be absolved of
responsibility by relying on a supervisor or administrator to meet his or her
individual reporting responsibility.
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d. The law states that when two or more
persons who are mandated reporters jointly have knowledge of a suspected
instance of child abuse, they may mutually agree that one among them will
follow the required reporting procedure.
Should the designated person fail to do so, the other knowledgeable
staff member who is aware that the report has not been made must assume the
reporting responsibility.
e. The investigating agency has the
responsibility of making a determination as to the course of action to be
taken. Investigation, counseling, and/or
family intervention are the responsibility of the child protective agency. The reporting employee shall not notify the
child’s parent or attempt to gain actual proof.
This is also the responsibility of the investigating agency.
f. The reporting person shall complete
the Department of Justice Form, #SS 8572, and mail to the Child Abuse Registry
within 36 hours of identifying suspected abuse.
(1) Send all copies (blue and pink) to the
child protective agency having jurisdiction.
(2) Child abuse reports are not to be shown
or given to parents except by court order.
2. Responsibility to Parents and Law
Enforcement Agency
a. School personnel who report child abuse
are not to contact the child’s parents about the report. This is the responsibility of the
investigating agency.
b. When necessary, and for reasonable
cause, law enforcement is the only agency which may remove a minor from the
school site and take the minor into protective custody. Where the minor is removed from the school
site for suspicion of being abused, the principal or other school official
shall provide the police officer with the address and telephone number of the
child’s parent/guardian. The police
officer should take immediate steps to notify the parent, guardian, or
responsible relative of the fact that the child is in custody.
c. When releasing a student to the custody
of a peace officer, the administrator shall follow Board Policy and
administrative procedures (5145.11).
Completion of the Release to Law Enforcement Agency Form is required if
a student is to be removed from
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d. Whenever members of the Child Abuse
Registry or police department interview a student, the child shall be given the
option of being interviewed in private or selecting any adult who is a member
of the school staff to be present during the interview. The staff member must not participate in the
interview or discuss the circumstances of the
3. Administrative Responsibilities
a. State law requires that each
certificated person who enters into employment on or after January 1, 1985,
prior to commencing the employment and as a prerequisite to that employment,
shall sign a statement on a form provided to the effect that he/she knows of
the requirements to report know or suspected instances of child abuse and will comply
therewith.
b. This policy requires that all employees
(certificated and classified) shall sign a statement on a form provided at
their assigned location to the effect that they know of the requirements to
report known or suspected instances of child abuse and will comply therewith.
c. The Site administrator shall
(1) provide appropriate staff development
activities at the site level to assure that all staff members understand the
contents of this policy, at least once a year.
(2) develop a specific local school or site
plan for reporting child abuse cases which includes the responsibilities of all
site employees and the provision that the site administrator is to be appraised
of all reports of suspected child abuse reported by staff.
(3) insure that all site employees are aware
of and understand the local reporting plan.
d. Classified management personnel shall
provide appropriate staff development activities within their departments and
obtain signed statements referenced in paragraph b above.
E. Reports Required
None
F. Record Retention and
Destruction
1. See pertinent procedures
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G. Responsible
Administrative Unit
1. Site administrator
2. Edu
3. Assistant Superintendent, Executive
Services
H. Approved by:
Doug Domene 9/22/08 Dennis
M. Smith 9/22/08
Responsible Division
Head / Date Superintendent
/ Date