Child in Need of Assistance 

  

Adjudication  

In Iowa there are 16 statutory grounds within which a child, under the age of 18, can be adjudicated to be a child in need of assistance. Iowa Code section 232.2(6). The most commonly used grounds for adjudication are the provisions defining physical abuse, sexual abuse and neglect. However, there are several other grounds for adjudication including that the child has tested positive for an illegal substance due to the acts or omissions of the child's parent or caretaker; the child suffers from a severe mental illness for which the parents are not able to provide treatment; or, the parent is unable to provide adequate food, clothing or shelter to the child.

At the adjudication hearing, the state is required to prove that the child is in fact a child in need of assistance within the meaning of one or more of the 16 CINA statutory grounds. The state, which is represented by the county attorney, is often opposed in these cases by the child's parent(s). However, parents are sometimes in agreement that their child is in need of services or out-of-home placement. In virtually all CINA proceedings, the parents are provided an attorney at state expense if they cannot afford one. Additionally, the child is provided a guardian ad litem to represent the child's interests in all CINA proceedings. (The term guardian ad litem basically means that the attorney not only represents the stated wishes of the child, but also undertakes an independent investigation to determine what is in the child's best interests.) In some cases, a child is represented by an attorney as well as a guardian ad litem.

Removal  

Even prior to the time of the adjudication hearing, the state can seek to remove the children from the custody of their parents if the children are in imminent danger to their lives or health. A juvenile judge may remove children from their home without a hearing if the judge is presented evidence by a person familiar with the cases that the children are in imminent danger. If children are removed without a hearing, a hearing must be held within 10 days after the children's removal. The court's first effort must always be to attempt to keep families together if this can be done safely, without exposing the child to harm. Iowa has family preservation services in all parts of the state. Family presentation consists of short-term intensive services designed to get families through periods of crisis. If family preservation services would alleviate the imminent danger to children, they must be used before a removal. Additionally, Iowa law provides that if only one parent or adult in the home poses a risk to the children, then the court can enter an order removing the parent/adult from the home rather than the children.

Disposition  

After the adjudication hearing (and possibly the removal hearing), the judge will next hold a disposition hearing. At disposition, the judge determines what services should be provided to the parent(s) to help them overcome whatever problems led to the need for adjudication, and what services should be provided to the child(ren). Often, the judge relies on a disposition report developed by social service professionals. If the child(ren) have been removed from the parent, a plan is set out that details what the parent must do to get custody of the child(ren) back.

As is described in the preceding paragraph, there are basically two kinds of dispositions: 1) the child remains in the home of the child's parent(s) and the parent(s) are required to cooperate with service providers: and, (2) the child is removed from the parent and the parent is required to participate in services to demonstrate whether they can regain custody of the child. Typically, the child is also receiving services.

Services most commonly provided for parents would include the following: psychological evaluations, therapy, parenting classes, in-home support services, drug/alcohol treatment and sexual offender programs.

Reviews  

All CINA cases, in which the child has been removed from the home, come on for review hearings before the juvenile judge every six months. At a review hearing, the judge will review the progress of the parents, the condition of the child, and the placement of the child if the child was removed from her parents.

Permanency

For a child who has been removed from her parent's custody, the Iowa Code provides that a permanent placement plan for the child should be developed no later than one year after the child was removed. After the child has been out of home for one year, a permanency hearing is to be held at which time the permanent plan is supposed to be instituted. If possible, the child should be returned to her parent(s) by the time of the permanency hearing. However, if the parent(s) are not a safe option, other permanent plans must be made. Most commonly, if the child cannot be returned home, a termination of parent rights will occur so that the child can be freed for adoption. Guardianship with a caretaker can be ordered, which most often occurs when the child is placed with a relative. Occasionally, a juvenile judge will order continued foster care; however, the judge can make such an order only if the judge finds that a termination of parental rights is not in the child's best interests.

Termination of Parental Rights  

A juvenile judge may enter an order terminating a parent's parental rights. Such an order permanently ends the parent's legal relationship to the child, and frees the child for adoption. The most common ground for termination of parental rights in Iowa is that the child has been placed in foster care for a period of time and the parent is still unable to safely care for the child. In Iowa, if a child three years of age or younger has been in foster care for six months or more, the state may file a petition to terminate the parent's parental rights. If a child is four years of age or older, the state may seek a termination of parental rights after the child has been in foster care for 12 months or more. There are certain instances when the state may seek to terminate parental rights even sooner such as when a parent has abandoned the child; when the abuse has been so severe that there is no hope to return the child to the parent; when the parent is facing long term incarceration; as well as other grounds. However, generally children wait much longer than 12 months to have permanency and a termination occur.

Parent's Juvenile Court Handbook

This handbook was written to help you understand court proceedings for a child in need of assistance, including whom the people are that you will meet and what is likely to happen. You may have questions that this book does not answer. Your lawyer or social worker can help. Please ask.