(a)(1) Temporary care, custody, and control upon filing of the petition. — Upon the filing of a petition, the court may order that the child alleged to be an abused or neglected child be delivered for not more than ten days into the care, custody, and control of the department or a responsible person who is not the custodial parent or guardian of the child, if it finds that:

Terms Used In West Virginia Code 49-4-602

  • Abandonment: means any conduct that demonstrates the settled purpose to forego the duties and parental responsibilities to the child. See West Virginia Code 49-1-201
  • child: means an individual who meets one of the following conditions:

    (A) Is under thirteen years of age. See West Virginia Code 49-1-202

  • Court: means the circuit court of the county with jurisdiction of the case or the judge in vacation unless otherwise specifically provided. See West Virginia Code 49-1-207
  • Custodian: means a person who has or shares actual physical possession or care and custody of a child, regardless of whether that person has been granted custody of the child by any contract or agreement. See West Virginia Code 49-1-204
  • Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
  • Imminent danger to the physical well-being of the child: means an emergency situation in which the welfare or the life of the child is threatened. See West Virginia Code 49-1-201
  • Neglected child: means a child:

    (A) Whose physical or mental health is harmed or threatened by a present refusal, failure or inability of the child&rsquo. See West Virginia Code 49-1-201

  • Parent: means an individual defined as a parent by law or on the basis of a biological relationship, marriage to a person with a biological relationship, legal adoption or other recognized grounds. See West Virginia Code 49-1-204
  • Parental rights: means any and all rights and duties regarding a parent to a minor child. See West Virginia Code 49-1-204
  • Placement: means any temporary or permanent placement of a child who is in the custody of the state in any foster home, kinship parent home, group home, or other facility or residence. See West Virginia Code 49-1-206
  • Preliminary hearing: A hearing where the judge decides whether there is enough evidence to make the defendant have a trial.
  • Sexual abuse: means :

    (A) Sexual intercourse, sexual intrusion, sexual contact, or conduct proscribed by §. See West Virginia Code 49-1-201

  • Sexual assault: means any of the offenses proscribed in §. See West Virginia Code 49-1-201
  • State: when applied to a part of the United States and not restricted by the context, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories, and the words "United States" also include the said district and territories. See West Virginia Code 2-2-10

(A) There exists imminent danger to the physical well-being of the child; and

(B) There are no reasonably available alternatives to removal of the child, including, but not limited to, the provision of medical, psychiatric, psychological or homemaking services in the child's present custody.

(2) Where the alleged abusing person, if known, is a member of a household, the court shall not allow placement pursuant to this section of the child or children in the home unless the alleged abusing person is or has been precluded from visiting or residing in the home by judicial order.

(3) In a case where there is more than one child in the home, or in the temporary care, custody or control of the alleged offending parent, the petition shall so state. Notwithstanding the fact that the allegations of abuse or neglect may pertain to less than all of those children, each child in the home for whom relief is sought shall be made a party to the proceeding. Even though the acts of abuse or neglect alleged in the petition were not directed against a specific child who is named in the petition, the court shall order the removal of the child, pending final disposition, if it finds that there exists imminent danger to the physical well-being of the child and a lack of reasonable available alternatives to removal.

(4) The initial order directing custody shall contain an order appointing counsel and scheduling the preliminary hearing, and upon its service shall require the immediate transfer of care, custody, and control of the child or children to the department or a responsible relative, which may include any parent, guardian, or other custodian. The court order shall state:

(A) That continuation in the home is contrary to the best interests of the child and why; and

(B) Whether or not the department made reasonable efforts to preserve the family and prevent the placement or that the emergency situation made those efforts unreasonable or impossible. The order may also direct any party or the department to initiate or become involved in services to facilitate reunification of the family.

(b) Temporary care, custody and control at preliminary hearing. — Whether or not the court orders immediate transfer of custody as provided in subsection (a) of this section, if the facts alleged in the petition demonstrate to the court that there exists imminent danger to the child, the court may schedule a preliminary hearing giving the respondents at least five days' actual notice. If the court finds at the preliminary hearing that there are no alternatives less drastic than removal of the child and that a hearing on the petition cannot be scheduled in the interim period, the court may order that the child be delivered into the temporary care, custody, and control of the department or a responsible person or agency found by the court to be a fit and proper person for the temporary care of the child for a period not exceeding sixty days. The court order shall state:

(1) That continuation in the home is contrary to the best interests of the child and set forth the reasons therefor;

(2) Whether or not the department made reasonable efforts to preserve the family and to prevent the child's removal from his or her home;

(3) Whether or not the department made reasonable efforts to preserve the family and to prevent the placement or that the emergency situation made those efforts unreasonable or impossible;

(4) Whether or not the department made reasonable accommodations in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, 42 U.S.C. § 12101, et seq., to parents with disabilities in order to allow them meaningful access to reunification and family preservation services; and

(5) What efforts should be made by the department, if any, to facilitate the child's return home. If the court grants an improvement period as provided in section six hundred ten of this article, the sixty-day limit upon temporary custody is waived.

(c) Emergency removal by department during pendency of case. — Regardless of whether the court has previously granted the department care and custody of a child, if the department takes physical custody of a child during the pendency of a child abuse and neglect case (also known as removing the child) due to a change in circumstances and without a court order issued at the time of the removal, the department must immediately notify the court and a hearing shall take place within ten days to determine if there is imminent danger to the physical well-being of the child, and there is no reasonably available alternative to removal of the child. The court findings and order shall be consistent with subsections (a) and (b) of this section.

(d) Situations when reasonable efforts to preserve the family are not required. — For purposes of the court's consideration of temporary custody pursuant to subsection (a), (b), or (c) of this section, the department is not required to make reasonable efforts to preserve the family if the court determines:

(1) The parent has subjected the child, another child of the parent or any other child residing in the same household or under the temporary or permanent custody of the parent to aggravated circumstances which include, but are not limited to, abandonment, torture, chronic abuse and sexual abuse;

(2) The parent has:

(A) Committed murder of the child's other parent, guardian or custodian, another child of the parent or any other child residing in the same household or under the temporary or permanent custody of the parent;

(B) Committed voluntary manslaughter of the child's other parent, guardian or custodian, another child of the parent or any other child residing in the same household or under the temporary or permanent custody of the parent;

(C) Attempted or conspired to commit murder or voluntary manslaughter or been an accessory before or after the fact to either crime;

(D) Committed unlawful or malicious wounding that results in serious bodily injury to the child, the child's other parent, guardian or custodian, to another child of the parent or any other child residing in the same household or under the temporary or permanent custody of the parent;

(E) Committed sexual assault or sexual abuse of the child, the child's other parent, guardian or custodian, another child of the parent or any other child residing in the same household or under the temporary or permanent custody of the parent; or

(F) Has been required by state or federal law to register with a sex offender registry, and the court has determined in consideration of the nature and circumstances surrounding the prior charges against that parent, that the child's interests would not be promoted by a preservation of the family; or

(3) The parental rights of the parent to another child have been terminated involuntarily.