| (a) Required notification in abbreviated ruled out
and thorough investigations.
(1) We must notify the following parties about the
findings of an abbreviated ruled out or thorough investigation unless
one of the exceptions specified in subsection (d) of this section
apply:
(A) Each parent or other person with primary or legal
responsibility for each alleged victim or alleged perpetrator who
is a minor;
(B) Each person identified as an alleged perpetrator.
For an alleged perpetrator who is a minor, we may send the notice
to the child's parents or other person with primary or legal responsibility
for the child; and
(C) The reporter, if the reporter's identity is known.
(2) We must provide notice to the persons specified
in paragraph (1) of this subsection within 15 days after the investigation
is closed by the supervisor.
(b) Required notification in administratively closed
investigations.
(1) We must notify the following parties about the
findings of an investigation that was closed administratively unless
one of the exceptions specified in subsection (d) of this section
apply:
(A) Each parent or other person with primary or legal
responsibility for each alleged victim or alleged perpetrator who
is a minor; and
(B) The reporter, if the reporter's identity is known.
(2) We must provide notice to the parents or other
person with primary or legal responsibility for each alleged victim
or alleged perpetrator who is a minor no later than 24 hours after
the investigation is closed by the supervisor and to the reporter
within 15 days.
(c) Optional provision of investigation findings upon
request.
(1) We may provide information about the investigation
to each parent or other person with primary or legal responsibility
for any child in the home under investigation, at the request of the
parent or person with primary or legal responsibility of the child,
unless one of the exceptions specified in subsection (d) of this section
exists. We may provide information from the investigation to the extent
we deem necessary for the protection and care of the child when such
information is necessary to meet the child's needs.
(2) We must not release information that is subject
to redaction under §700.204, subchapter B, chapter 700, of this
title (relating to Redaction of Records Prior to Release).
(d) Exceptions to providing notification.
(1) During the investigation, we were unable to locate
the person entitled to notification despite having made reasonable
efforts to locate the person.
(2) Notwithstanding requirements to notify certain
persons of investigation results, we will not provide the notice when
we determine that the notice is likely to endanger the safety of any
child in the home, the reporter, or any other person who participated
in the investigation of the report. This safety exception does not
apply to a designated perpetrator entitled to receive notice under
subsection (f) of this section, or to a former alleged perpetrator
entitled to receive notice under subsection (g) of this section.
(3) We may delay notification of a person entitled
to notification under this section if a law enforcement agency requests
the delay because timely notification would interfere with an ongoing
criminal investigation. We may delay notification only in those circumstances
in which the law enforcement agency agrees to notify us at the earliest
time that the delay is no longer needed. We must provide the notification
within 15 days after the date on which we are notified that the law
enforcement agency has withdrawn the request to delay the notification.
(4) We will not provide required notifications or optional
information about findings under this section if an investigation
is being closed administratively because the report was referred for
investigation to another authorized entity, such as law enforcement
or another state agency.
(e) Form of notification. Notifications about the findings
of an investigation may be either written or oral, except the notifications
in paragraphs (1)-(2) of this subsection must be provided in writing:
(1) Written notification of the designated perpetrator,
or designated victim perpetrator; and
(2) Written notification of an alleged perpetrator
when all allegations in the case involving the person as an alleged
perpetrator have been ruled out.
(f) Required written notification of the designated
perpetrator. We must give written notice of the findings of the investigation
to everyone who has been identified as a designated perpetrator as
specified in §707.497(b)(2) or (3) of this subchapter (relating
to What roles can we assign to persons involved in a case after the
investigation is complete?). For a designated perpetrator who is a
minor, the notice is sent to the child's parents or other person with
primary or legal responsibility for the child.
(g) Required written notification of an alleged perpetrator
when all allegations involving the person as an alleged perpetrator
have been ruled out. We must give written notice of the right to request
removal of role information to each person who was identified as an
alleged perpetrator when all the allegations in the case involving
the person as an alleged perpetrator have been ruled out. If the person
is a minor, we may send the notice to the minor's parents.
(h) Notifying the reporter. If the reporter is not
a professional working with the family, notification to the reporter
discloses only:
(1) That we investigated the report; and
(2) Whether we provided services to the family during
the investigation or plan to provide services to the family after
the investigation.
|
