CHAPTER 17. PREDISPOSITIONAL REPORT
IC 31-37-17
Chapter 17. Predispositional Report
IC 31-37-17-1
Recommendation of care, treatment, or rehabilitation of child;alternative reports
Sec. 1. (a) Upon finding that a child is a delinquent child, thejuvenile court shall order a probation officer to prepare apredispositional report that contains:
(1) a statement of the needs of the child for care, treatment,rehabilitation, or placement;
(2) a recommendation for the care, treatment, rehabilitation, orplacement of the child;
(3) if the recommendation includes an out-of-home placementother than a secure detention facility, information that thedepartment requires to determine whether the child is eligiblefor assistance under Title IV-E of the federal Social SecurityAct (42 U.S.C. 670 et seq.);
(4) a statement of the department's concurrence with or itsalternative proposal to the probation officer's predispositionalreport, as provided in section 1.4 of this chapter; and
(5) a statement of whether the child receives Medicaid.
(b) Any of the following may prepare an alternative report forconsideration by the court:
(1) The child.
(2) The child's:
(A) parent;
(B) guardian;
(C) guardian ad litem;
(D) court appointed special advocate; or
(E) custodian.
As added by P.L.1-1997, SEC.20. Amended by P.L.55-1997, SEC.25;P.L.146-2008, SEC.637; P.L.114-2009, SEC.2; P.L.131-2009,SEC.68; P.L.1-2010, SEC.127.
IC 31-37-17-1.1
Consultation with experts; participants in conference
Sec. 1.1. (a) The person preparing the report under section 1 ofthis chapter:
(1) may; or
(2) if directed by the court, shall;
confer with individuals who have expertise in professional areasrelated to the child's needs in the areas of appropriate care, treatment,rehabilitation, or placement for a delinquent child.
(b) A conference held under this chapter may includerepresentatives of the following:
(1) The child's school.
(2) The probation department.
(3) The department.
(4) A community mental health center located in the child's
county of residence.
(5) A community mental retardation and other developmentaldisabilities center located in the child's county of residence.
(6) Other persons as the court may direct.
As added by P.L.55-1997, SEC.26. Amended by P.L.253-1997(ss),SEC.28.5; P.L.145-2006, SEC.340.
IC 31-37-17-1.2
Mandatory attendance of child's school representative atconference
Sec. 1.2. If a delinquent child is known to be eligible for specialeducation services or placement under IC 20-35-2 and 511 IAC 7, theconference described in section 1.1 of this chapter must include arepresentative from the child's school.
As added by P.L.55-1997, SEC.27. Amended by P.L.1-2005,SEC.210.
IC 31-37-17-1.3
Reports and forms
Sec. 1.3. (a) The individuals participating in a meeting describedin section 1.1 of this chapter shall assist the person preparing thereport in recommending the care, treatment, rehabilitation, orplacement of the child.
(b) The individuals shall inform the person preparing the reportof resources and programs that are available for the child.
(c) The probation officer shall:
(1) collect and maintain all information relevant to adetermination of eligibility under Title IV-E of the federalSocial Security Act (42 U.S.C. 670 et seq.); and
(2) complete financial eligibility forms designated by thedirector to assist in obtaining federal reimbursement and otherreimbursement.
As added by P.L.55-1997, SEC.28. Amended by P.L.273-1999,SEC.108; P.L.146-2008, SEC.638.
IC 31-37-17-1.4
Referral of predispositional report to department; review ofpredispositional report by department; concurrence or alternativeproposal
Sec. 1.4. (a) If the predispositional report includes a recommendedplacement, program, or services that would be payable by thedepartment under IC 31-40-1-2, a probation officer shall refer theofficer's completed predispositional report, except for the statementrequired under section 1(a)(4) of this chapter, to the departmentwithin a reasonable time before its required disclosure under section6 of this chapter to allow the department time to:
(1) review; and
(2) either concur with or offer an alternative proposal to therecommendations in;
the predispositional report. (b) The department shall, after review of the predispositionalreport and any attachments necessary to verify the predispositionalreport, and within a reasonable time before the dispositional hearing,either:
(1) concur with the predispositional report; or
(2) communicate to the probation officer an alternative proposalregarding programs and services.
As added by P.L.146-2008, SEC.639.
IC 31-37-17-2
Participation by parent, guardian, or custodian; out-of-homeplacement with blood or adoptive relative caretaker
Sec. 2. (a) In addition to providing the court with arecommendation for the care, treatment, or rehabilitation of the child,the person preparing the report shall consider the necessity, nature,and extent of the participation by a parent, guardian, or custodian ina program of care, treatment, or rehabilitation for the child.
(b) If a probation officer believes that an out-of-home placementwould be appropriate for a delinquent child, the probation officershall consider whether the child should be placed with the child'ssuitable and willing blood or adoptive relative caretaker, includinga grandparent, an aunt, an uncle, or an adult sibling, beforeconsidering other out-of-home placements for the child.
As added by P.L.1-1997, SEC.20. Amended by P.L.146-2008,SEC.640.
IC 31-37-17-3
Financial report
Sec. 3. The probation officer shall collect information and preparea financial report, in the form prescribed by the department, on theparent or the estate of the child to assist the juvenile court and thedepartment in:
(1) determining the person's financial responsibility; and
(2) obtaining federal reimbursement;
for services provided for the child or the person.
As added by P.L.1-1997, SEC.20. Amended by P.L.273-1999,SEC.109; P.L.145-2006, SEC.341; P.L.146-2008, SEC.641.
IC 31-37-17-4
Recommendation on care, treatment, rehabilitation, or placement;risk assessment and needs assessment
Sec. 4. (a) If consistent with the safety and best interest of thechild and the community, the probation officer preparing the reportshall recommend care, treatment, rehabilitation, or placement that:
(1) is:
(A) in the least restrictive (most family like) and mostappropriate setting available; and
(B) close to the parents' home, consistent with the bestinterest and special needs of the child;
(2) least interferes with family autonomy; (3) is least disruptive of family life;
(4) imposes the least restraint on the freedom of the child andthe child's parent, guardian, or custodian; and
(5) provides a reasonable opportunity for participation by thechild's parent, guardian, or custodian.
(b) If the report recommends a placement or services for whichthe department will be responsible for payment under IC 31-40-1, thereport must include a risk assessment and needs assessment for thechild. The probation officer shall submit to the department a copy ofthe report and the financial report prepared by the probation officer.
(c) If the report does not include the:
(1) risk assessment and needs assessment required in subsection(b); or
(2) information required to be provided under section 1(a)(3) ofthis chapter;
the department is not responsible to pay for programs, services, orplacement for or on behalf of the child.
As added by P.L.1-1997, SEC.20. Amended by P.L.55-1997, SEC.29;P.L.146-2008, SEC.642.
IC 31-37-17-5
Examinations
Sec. 5. The juvenile court may do the following:
(1) Authorize an examination of the child under IC 31-32-12.
(2) Make provision for similar examination of the parent,guardian, or custodian if the person gives consent.
As added by P.L.1-1997, SEC.20.
IC 31-37-17-6
Disclosure
Sec. 6. (a) Predispositional reports shall be made available withina reasonable time before the dispositional hearing, unless thejuvenile court determines on the record that the reports containinformation that should not be released to the child or the child'sparent, guardian, or custodian.
(b) The court shall provide a copy of the report to:
(1) each attorney, guardian ad litem, or court appointed specialadvocate representing the child; and
(2) each attorney representing the child's parent, guardian, orcustodian.
(c) The court may provide a factual summary of the report to:
(1) the child; or
(2) the child's parent, guardian, or custodian.
As added by P.L.1-1997, SEC.20. Amended by P.L.197-1997,SEC.28.
IC 31-37-17-6.1
Predispositional report; contents
Sec. 6.1. (a) The predispositional report prepared by a probationofficer must include the following information: (1) A description of all dispositional options considered inpreparing the report.
(2) An evaluation of each of the options considered in relationto the plan of care, treatment, rehabilitation, or placementrecommended under the guidelines described in section 4 of thischapter.
(3) The name, occupation and position, and any relationship tothe child of each person with whom the preparer of the reportconferred as provided in section 1.1 of this chapter.
(4) The items required under section 1 of this chapter.
(b) If a probation officer is considering an out-of-home placement,including placement with a blood or an adoptive relative caretaker,the probation officer must conduct a criminal history check (asdefined in IC 31-9-2-22.5) for each person who is currently residingin the location designated as the out-of-home placement. The resultsof the criminal history check must be included in the predispositionalreport.
(c) A probation officer is not required to conduct a criminalhistory check under this section if:
(1) the probation officer is considering only an out-of-homeplacement to an entity or a facility that:
(A) is not a residence (as defined in IC 3-5-2-42.5); or
(B) is licensed by the state; or
(2) placement under this section is undetermined at the time thepredispositional report is prepared.
As added by P.L.55-1997, SEC.30. Amended by P.L.70-2004,SEC.24; P.L.234-2005, SEC.186; P.L.145-2006, SEC.342;P.L.146-2008, SEC.643.
IC 31-37-17-7
Victim notification
Sec. 7. (a) This section shall not be construed to limit victim'srights granted by IC 35-40 or any other law.
(b) In the case of a child who commits a delinquent act that wouldbe a sex offense (as defined in IC 11-13-6-5.5(b)) if the child werean adult, the person preparing the predispositional report undersection 1 of this chapter shall, before the predispositional report isprepared, notify each victim (as defined in IC 11-13-6-5.5) in theproceeding of the victim's rights under IC 11-13-6-5.5 and theprocedures related to the exercises of those rights.
As added by P.L.77-2001, SEC.2.
IC 31-37-17-8
Exchange of information
Sec. 8. Unless prohibited by federal law, a probation departmentand:
(1) the division of family resources;
(2) a county office; and
(3) the department of child services;
may exchange information for use in preparing a report under this
chapter.
As added by P.L.131-2009, SEC.69.