8-201

8-201. Definitions

In this title, unless the context otherwise requires:

1. "Abandoned" means the failure of the parent to provide reasonable support and to
maintain regular contact with the child, including providing normal supervision.
Abandoned includes a judicial finding that a parent has made only minimal efforts to
support and communicate with the child. Failure to maintain a normal parental
relationship with the child without just cause for a period of six months constitutes
prima facie evidence of abandonment.

2. "Abuse" means the infliction or allowing of physical injury, impairment of
bodily function or disfigurement or the infliction of or allowing another person to cause
serious emotional damage as evidenced by severe anxiety, depression, withdrawal or
untoward aggressive behavior and which emotional damage is diagnosed by a medical doctor
or psychologist and is caused by the acts or omissions of an individual having care,
custody and control of a child. Abuse includes:

(a) Inflicting or allowing sexual abuse pursuant to section 13-1404, sexual conduct
with a minor pursuant to section 13-1405, sexual assault pursuant to section 13-1406,
molestation of a child pursuant to section 13-1410, commercial sexual exploitation of a
minor pursuant to section 13-3552, sexual exploitation of a minor pursuant to section
13-3553, incest pursuant to section 13-3608 or child prostitution pursuant to section
13-3212.

(b) Physical injury that results from permitting a child to enter or remain in any
structure or vehicle in which volatile, toxic or flammable chemicals are found or
equipment is possessed by any person for the purpose of manufacturing a dangerous drug as
defined in section 13-3401.

(c) Unreasonable confinement of a child.

3. "Adult" means a person who is eighteen years of age or older.

4. "Adult court" means the appropriate justice court, municipal court or criminal
division of the superior court that has jurisdiction to hear proceedings concerning
offenses committed by juveniles as provided in sections 8-327 and 13-501.

5. "Award" or "commit" means to assign legal custody.

6. "Child", "youth" or "juvenile" means an individual who is under the age of
eighteen years.

7. "Complaint" means a written statement of the essential facts constituting a
public offense that is any of the following:

(a) Made on an oath before a judge or commissioner of the superior court or an
authorized juvenile hearing officer.

(b) Made pursuant to section 13-3903.

(c) Accompanied by an affidavit of a law enforcement officer or employee that
swears on information and belief to the accuracy of the complaint pursuant to section
13-4261.

8. "Custodian" means a person, other than a parent or legal guardian, who stands in
loco parentis to the child or a person to whom legal custody of the child has been given
by order of the juvenile court.

9. "Delinquency hearing" means a proceeding in the juvenile court to determine
whether a juvenile has committed a specific delinquent act as set forth in a petition.

10. "Delinquent act" means an act by a juvenile that if committed by an adult would
be a criminal offense or a petty offense, a violation of any law of this state, or of
another state if the act occurred in that state, or a law of the United States, or a
violation of any law that can only be violated by a minor and that has been designated as
a delinquent offense, or any ordinance of a city, county or political subdivision of this
state defining crime. Delinquent act does not include an offense under section 13-501,
subsection A or B if the offense is filed in adult court. Any juvenile who is prosecuted
as an adult or who is remanded for prosecution as an adult shall not be adjudicated as a
delinquent juvenile for the same offense.

11. "Delinquent juvenile" means a child who is adjudicated to have committed a
delinquent act.

12. "Department" means the department of economic security.

13. "Dependent child":

(a) Means a child who is adjudicated to be:

(i) In need of proper and effective parental care and control and who has no parent
or guardian, or one who has no parent or guardian willing to exercise or capable of
exercising such care and control.

(ii) Destitute or who is not provided with the necessities of life, including
adequate food, clothing, shelter or medical care.

(iii) A child whose home is unfit by reason of abuse, neglect, cruelty or depravity
by a parent, a guardian or any other person having custody or care of the child.

(iv) Under eight years of age and who is found to have committed an act that would
result in adjudication as a delinquent juvenile or incorrigible child if committed by an
older juvenile or child.

(v) Incompetent or not restorable to competency and who is alleged to have
committed a serious offense as defined in section 13-706.

(b) Does not include a child who in good faith is being furnished Christian Science
treatment by a duly accredited practitioner if none of the circumstances described in
subdivision (a) of this paragraph exists.

14. "Detention" means the temporary confinement of a juvenile who requires secure
care in a physically restricting facility that is completely surrounded by a locked and
physically secure barrier with restricted ingress and egress for the protection of the
juvenile or the community pending court disposition or as a condition of probation.

15. "Health professional" has the same meaning prescribed in section 32-3201.

16. "Incorrigible child" means a child who:

(a) Is adjudicated as a child who refuses to obey the reasonable and proper orders
or directions of a parent, guardian or custodian and who is beyond the control of that
person.

(b) Is habitually truant from school as defined in section 15-803, subsection C.

(c) Is a runaway from the child's home or parent, guardian or custodian.

(d) Habitually behaves in such a manner as to injure or endanger the morals or
health of self or others.

(e) Commits any act constituting an offense that can only be committed by a minor
and that is not designated as a delinquent act.

(f) Fails to obey any lawful order of a court of competent jurisdiction given in a
noncriminal action.

17. "Independent living program" includes a residential program with supervision of
less than twenty-four hours a day.

18. "Juvenile court" means the juvenile division of the superior court when
exercising its jurisdiction over children in any proceeding relating to delinquency,
dependency or incorrigibility.

19. "Law enforcement officer" means a peace officer, sheriff, deputy sheriff,
municipal police officer or constable.

20. "Medical director of a mental health agency" means a psychiatrist, or licensed
physician experienced in psychiatric matters, who is designated in writing by the
governing body of the agency as the person in charge of the medical services of the
agency, or a psychiatrist designated by the governing body to act for the director. The
term includes the superintendent of the state hospital.

21. "Mental health agency" means any private or public facility that is licensed by
this state as a mental health treatment agency, a psychiatric hospital, a psychiatric
unit of a general hospital or a residential treatment center for emotionally disturbed
children and that uses secure settings or mechanical restraints.

22. "Neglect" or "neglected" means:

(a) The inability or unwillingness of a parent, guardian or custodian of a child to
provide that child with supervision, food, clothing, shelter or medical care if that
inability or unwillingness causes unreasonable risk of harm to the child's health or
welfare, except if the inability of a parent, guardian or custodian to provide services
to meet the needs of a child with a disability or chronic illness is solely the result of
the unavailability of reasonable services.

(b) Permitting a child to enter or remain in any structure or vehicle in which
volatile, toxic or flammable chemicals are found or equipment is possessed by any person
for the purposes of manufacturing a dangerous drug as defined in section 13-3401.

(c) A determination by a health professional that a newborn infant was exposed
prenatally to a drug or substance listed in section 13-3401 and that this exposure was
not the result of a medical treatment administered to the mother or the newborn infant by
a health professional. This subdivision does not expand a health professional's duty to
report neglect based on prenatal exposure to a drug or substance listed in section
13-3401 beyond the requirements prescribed pursuant to section 13-3620, subsection E.
The determination by the health professional shall be based on one or more of the
following:

(i) Clinical indicators in the prenatal period including maternal and newborn
presentation.

(ii) History of substance use or abuse.

(iii) Medical history.

(iv) Results of a toxicology or other laboratory test on the mother or the newborn
infant.

(d) Diagnosis by a health professional of an infant under one year of age with
clinical findings consistent with fetal alcohol syndrome or fetal alcohol effects.

(e) Deliberate exposure of a child by a parent, guardian or custodian to sexual
conduct as defined in section 13-3551 or to sexual contact, oral sexual contact or sexual
intercourse as defined in section 13-1401, bestiality as prescribed in section 13-1411 or
explicit sexual materials as defined in section 13-3507.

(f) Any of the following acts committed by the child's parent, guardian or
custodian with reckless disregard as to whether the child is physically present:

(i) Sexual contact as defined in section 13-1401.

(ii) Oral sexual contact as defined in section 13-1401.

(iii) Sexual intercourse as defined in section 13-1401.

(iv) Bestiality as prescribed in section 13-1411.

23. "Newborn infant" means a child who is under thirty days of age.

24. "Petition" means a written statement of the essential facts that allege
delinquency, incorrigibility or dependency.

25. "Prevention" means the creation of conditions, opportunities and experiences
that encourage and develop healthy, self-sufficient children and that occur before the
onset of problems.

26. "Protective supervision" means supervision that is ordered by the juvenile court
of children who are found to be dependent or incorrigible.

27. "Referral" means a report that is submitted to the juvenile court and that
alleges that a child is dependent or incorrigible or that a juvenile has committed a
delinquent or criminal act.

28. "Secure care" means confinement in a facility that is completely surrounded by a
locked and physically secure barrier with restricted ingress and egress.

29. "Serious emotional injury" means an injury that is diagnosed by a medical doctor
or a psychologist and that does any one or a combination of the following:

(a) Seriously impairs mental faculties.

(b) Causes serious anxiety, depression, withdrawal or social dysfunction behavior
to the extent that the child suffers dysfunction that requires treatment.

(c) Is the result of sexual abuse pursuant to section 13-1404, sexual conduct with
a minor pursuant to section 13-1405, sexual assault pursuant to section 13-1406,
molestation of a child pursuant to section 13-1410, child prostitution pursuant to
section 13-3212, commercial sexual exploitation of a minor pursuant to section 13-3552,
sexual exploitation of a minor pursuant to section 13-3553 or incest pursuant to section
13-3608.

30. "Serious physical injury" means an injury that is diagnosed by a medical doctor
and that does any one or a combination of the following:

(a) Creates a reasonable risk of death.

(b) Causes serious or permanent disfigurement.

(c) Causes significant physical pain.

(d) Causes serious impairment of health.

(e) Causes the loss or protracted impairment of an organ or limb.

(f) Is the result of sexual abuse pursuant to section 13-1404, sexual conduct with
a minor pursuant to section 13-1405, sexual assault pursuant to section 13-1406,
molestation of a child pursuant to section 13-1410, child prostitution pursuant to
section 13-3212, commercial sexual exploitation of a minor pursuant to section 13-3552,
sexual exploitation of a minor pursuant to section 13-3553 or incest pursuant to section
13-3608.

31. "Shelter care" means the temporary care of a child in any public or private
facility or home that is licensed by this state and that offers a physically nonsecure
environment that is characterized by the absence of physically restricting construction
or hardware and that provides the child access to the surrounding community.