(A) An order issued as a result of the probable cause hearing held pursuant to Section 63-7-710 concerning a child of whom the department has assumed legal custody shall contain a finding by the court of whether reasonable efforts were made by the department to prevent removal of the child and a finding of whether continuation of the child in the home would be contrary to the welfare of the child. The order shall state:

(1) the services made available to the family before the department assumed legal custody of the child and how they related to the needs of the family;

(2) the efforts of the department to provide services to the family before assuming legal custody of the child;

(3) why the efforts to provide services did not eliminate the need for the department to assume legal custody;

(4) whether a meeting was convened as provided in Section 63-7-640, the persons present, and the outcome of the meeting or, if no meeting was held, the reason for not holding a meeting;

(5) what efforts were made to place the child with a relative known to the child or in another familiar environment;

(6) whether the efforts to eliminate the need for the department to assume legal custody were reasonable including, but not limited to, whether services were reasonably available and timely, reasonably adequate to address the needs of the family, reasonably adequate to protect the child and realistic under the circumstances, and whether efforts to place the child in a familiar environment were reasonable.

(B) Reasonable efforts required pursuant to subsection (A) to prevent removal of the child from a parent or legal guardian who has a disability must include efforts that are individualized and based upon a parent's or legal guardian's specific disability, including referrals for access to adaptive parenting equipment, referrals for instruction on adaptive parenting techniques, and reasonable accommodations with regard to accessing services that are otherwise made available to a parent or legal guardian who does not have a disability.

(C) If the court finds that reasonable services would not have allowed the child to remain safely in the home, the court shall find that removal of the child without services or without further services was reasonable.

HISTORY: 2008 Act No. 361, Section 2; 2017 Act No. 36 (H.3538), Section 3, eff May 10, 2017.

Effect of Amendment

2017 Act No. 36, Section 3, inserted (B), relating to reasonable efforts requirements for probable cause hearings and requiring certain efforts if a parent or legal guardian has a disability, and redesignated accordingly.