Child protection in Alaska, what happens after a report of harm? - FAQ

When OCS receives a report or allegation that a child might be unsafe or at risk of harm, it does an Initial Investigation and Assessment to determine if there is a risk of harm to the child.  During the investigation, all reports or allegations of danger or harm to the child should be looked into.  Any reports not related to an actual risk of harm will be screened out and not be looked at any more.  

Reports related to an actual risk of harm will be investigated.  An OCS specialist will gather documents, visit the home, and interview the people involved.  Sometimes the police might also be involved.  If you or the child are Alaska Native, you have a right to have your tribal representative present during both the initial stages of investigation and whenever you speak with OCS, if they are available.  You should contact your tribal representative to request their assistance if you believe it will be helpful. 

When the investigation is complete, OCS will decide whether there is evidence to support the allegations or not.  If OCS staff decide that the allegations of harm are supported, then they will make a finding of “substantiation.”  This is a formal legal finding that you have been responsible for the neglect or abuse of a child.  Note: The finding may show up on future background checks about you.

OCS will weigh the risk to the child and decide whether or not to open an ongoing case.  Not every “substantiation,” will result in an ongoing case and not every ongoing case will result in a court case or OCS taking custody of a child. 

When OCS is conducting an Initial Investigation and Assessment, the parents involved have a right to:  

• Be treated with dignity and respect, be free from discrimination, and have their language or other special needs accommodated;
• Have the report of child abuse or neglect assessed in a timely manner;
• Be notified if they are identified in the report as the person believed to be responsible for the abuse or neglect of the child, be told information about the report, and be told why the assessment is being conducted;
• Know the outcome of the initial assessment;
• Talk to an OCS supervisor if they have concerns regarding OCS actions.

If OCS issues a “substantiation” finding against you, you are entitled to formal notice of OCS’s findings.

You have a right to request an appeal of OCS’s substantiation finding.  Instructions on how to request an appeal before the Office of Administrative Hearings will be included in the written notice of finding; you may also contact OCS’s Community Relations Manager by emailing hssocscommunications@alaska.gov or by calling (907) 465-3548.

Yes, OCS calls this an “ongoing case” that is “open for services.”  
Important note: when OCS threatens to remove your child, or imposes certain rules upon your household, a formal court case will allow you to have OCS’s decisions reviewed by a judge, and will allow you access to an attorney, if you cannot otherwise afford one.  If you do not do what OCS wants, it is possible that a formal case will be started.

If OCS has an “ongoing case” that is “open for services,” it means that OCS has done an Initial Investigation and Assessment and decided that a child is at risk of harm, and that OCS needs to get involved to prevent harm to the child.  OCS involvement involves making a “safety plan” to keep the children safe and/or a “case plan” that sets out changes a parent needs to make to keep the child safe.
Important note: when OCS threatens to remove your child, or imposes certain rules upon your household, a formal court case will allow you to have OCS’s decisions reviewed by a judge, and will allow you access to an attorney, if you cannot otherwise afford one.  If you do not do what OCS wants, it is possible that a formal case will be started.

OCS tries to prevent harm by making an “in-home safety plan”, that involves other safe, responsible adults to help the parents keep the child safe in their home.  With that safety in place, the parents work on making any changes needed to make the home safe.  If everything goes well, the home will be made safe, the safety plan will end, and OCS will close the case.  When a safety plan isn’t being followed, or the risk of harm to the child is too great, OCS might take further action, including taking custody of the child.

OCS may be willing to work with you to create an “out-of-home” safety plan, placing your child in the home of an adult of your choosing, while you work to address safety issues OCS has identified.  The individual you place your child with will need to pass an informal OCS background check in order to be approved as an appropriate home by OCS.  These arrangements are meant to be short-term.  It is helpful, when an out-of-home safety plan is in place, or when you feel that you need to rely upon friends and family to care for your child, to sign a temporary power of attorney to the adult meeting your child’s needs.  The Alaska Court System’s website offers a form you can use for this agreement, PG-701, “Power of Attorney of Minor by Parent or Guardian.”
If you need to write out your own form, the written agreement should say something like this:

• “I appoint (name of friend or relative) as my attorney in fact.”
• “I grant (name of friend or relative) authority regarding the care, custody, property, support, medical treatment, and education of my child, and the power to give or withhold consent to any and all actions regarding the above.”
• “This delegation does not include the power to consent to adoption or marriage of the child.”
• “This delegation will be effective for one (1) year after which it expires.”

Sign the form, or the written agreement, in front of a notary if possible (but this is not required).  This type of temporary agreement does not terminate your parental rights, but will enable another adult to meet your child’s day-to-day needs. 
 

In order to make your family safer, OCS will create a “case plan” setting out what changes parents need to make to keep their child(ren) safe now, and in the future.  The plan will set out what help OCS will provide to the parents.  An ongoing case can end when the parents, guardians, or custodians of a child make the changes required by OCS so that the child is safe.  Then the OCS case is closed.  When a case plan isn’t being followed, or the risk of harm to the child is too great, OCS might take further action, including taking custody of the child.

If OCS has taken emergency custody of your child(ren) – you have certain immediate rights.

First: Within 24 hours of taking your child, OCS must either:
(a)    file a Petition with the court for a Child in Need of Aid (CINA), OR
(b)    release custody of your child to you, or certain relatives or friends.

If OCS refuses to return the child to your care, then it will only release your child to a relative or friend if the custodial parent(s) give consent, and OCS agrees that the relative or family friend is adequately safe.  
The person you choose will need to pass an informal background check by OCS.  Signing a formal power of attorney, that gives another adult the authority to care for your child, may help OCS (or a Judge) to accept that your plan of care for your child is adequate, and that OCS does not need to be involved on an ongoing basis.

OCS Requirements – The OCS worker must:

• Review the Petition with you to ensure that you understand what you are accused of;
• Explain the court procedures;
• Notify you of your right to an attorney, including your right to have an attorney appointed for you by the court if you cannot afford one;
• Give the location, date, and time of your hearing and provide you with a copy of the Petition if the hearing has already been set, and;
• Contact the tribe of an Alaska Native child.

The Child in Need of Aid Petition OCS files must:

• State any safety threats believed to be present, and
• Provide the court’s phone number, the OCS worker’s phone number, and the phone number for the OCS worker’s supervisor.

The temporary custody hearing will occur within 48 hours of when OCS files the petition.  That hearing is your first opportunity to ask for an attorney, if you cannot afford one, one will be provided.

Following removal, you and our child’s other family have a right to reasonable visitation.  If OCS refuses visitation and you have not seen your child, you and your family have the right to request a review hearing in court.

Throughout your Child in Need of Aid court case, OCS will have an obligation to prove that removal from your care is necessary, and that OCS is making appropriate efforts to help you work toward reunifying with your child. 

You will have a right to weigh in on where your child is placed, and OCS has an obligation to place your child in the home of an adult family member or family friend who meets foster care licensing standards (unless there is clear and convincing evidence that placement in the home is not appropriate). 

If your child is a member of an Indian Tribe, or if the child is eligible for membership and either parent is a member, additional rights will be available to you under the Indian Child Welfare Act.  These include: 

• Higher burdens of proof for OCS to remove a child from your care; 
• An obligation for OCS to work harder to reunify you with your child;
• The right of  your child’s Tribe to become a legal party to the case;
• The right to ask for your child’s Tribe to take jurisdiction over the case, and for you to refuse to allow that transfer to happen, when transfer is sought.
   

You have a right to a lawyer when OCS has filed a Child in Need of Aid (CINA) Petition involving your child(ren).  If you cannot afford a lawyer, the court will appoint a lawyer for you.  It is important to appear at any court hearing involving your child because the judge should inquire whether you need to be appointed an attorney when you first appear before the court.  However, you should speak up to ask for an attorney if you are not asked.  You may also call the clerk at the courthouse to ask how to get an appointed lawyer for your Child In Need of Aid case.  The Office of the Attorney General may also be able to assist you in getting an attorney appointed to represent you. 
If you are at your first hearing and you do not have an attorney to represent you, you have the right to ask that the hearing be continued (moved to a later date), so that you can have an attorney present.  Say to the judge, “I want to wait to have the hearing until I have a lawyer.  I would like a continuance please.”

Tribal Representative: If your children are Alaska Native, your tribal representative may be able to answer many of your questions.

Attorney: If OCS files a Child In Need of Aid (CINA) Petition you have a right to an attorney and you should contact your attorney as soon as possible.