85R13081 MK-D
By: Burkett H.B. No. 3097
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the procedures following a child fatality or near
fatality and the relating investigation by the Department of Family
and Protective Services.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Article 49.10, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended by adding Subsection (i-1) to read as follows:
(i-1) Notwithstanding any provision to the contrary, if the
deceased was a child younger than six years of age whose death is
determined under Section 264.514, Family Code, to be unexpected or
the result of abuse or neglect, a justice of the peace must order a
complete autopsy of the deceased.
SECTION 2. Section 9(a), Article 49.25, Code of Criminal
Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
(a) If the cause of death shall be determined beyond a
reasonable doubt as a result of the investigation, the medical
examiner shall file a report thereof setting forth specifically the
cause of death with the district attorney or criminal district
attorney, or in a county in which there is no district attorney or
criminal district attorney with the county attorney, of the county
in which the death occurred. If in the opinion of the medical
examiner an autopsy is necessary, or if such is requested by the
district attorney or criminal district attorney, or county attorney
where there is no district attorney or criminal district attorney,
the autopsy shall be immediately performed by the medical examiner
or a duly authorized deputy. In those cases where a complete
autopsy is deemed unnecessary by the medical examiner to ascertain
the cause of death, the medical examiner may perform a limited
autopsy involving the taking of blood samples or any other samples
of body fluids, tissues or organs, in order to ascertain the cause
of death or whether a crime has been committed. If the deceased was
a child younger than six years of age and the death is determined
under Section 264.514, Family Code, to be unexpected or the result
of abuse or neglect, the medical examiner shall perform a complete
autopsy. In the case of a body of a human being whose identity is
unknown, the medical examiner may authorize such investigative and
laboratory tests and processes as are required to determine its
identity as well as the cause of death. In performing an autopsy
the medical examiner or authorized deputy may use the facilities of
any city or county hospital within the county or such other
facilities as are made available. Upon completion of the autopsy,
the medical examiner shall file a report setting forth the findings
in detail with the office of the district attorney or criminal
district attorney of the county, or if there is no district attorney
or criminal district attorney, with the county attorney of the
county.
SECTION 3. Subchapter C, Chapter 261, Family Code, is
amended by adding Section 261.2031 to read as follows:
Sec. 261.2031. DESIGNATED CHILD FATALITY INVESTIGATION
CASEWORKERS. The department shall designate caseworkers or create
a specialized unit of department employees to conduct
investigations involving child fatalities. Caseworkers or
employees designated for child fatality investigations shall be
assigned based on experience and length of time working for the
department.
SECTION 4. Sections 264.502(a) and (b), Family Code, are
amended to read as follows:
(a) The child fatality review team committee is composed of:
(1) a person appointed by and representing the state
registrar of vital statistics;
(2) a person appointed by and representing the
commissioner of the department;
(3) a person appointed by and representing the Title V
director of the Department of State Health Services; [and]
(4) a person appointed by and representing the speaker
of the house of representatives;
(5) a person appointed by and representing the
lieutenant governor;
(6) a person appointed by and representing the
governor; and
(7) individuals selected under Subsection (b).
(b) The members of the committee who serve under Subsections
(a)(1) through (6) [(3)] shall select the following additional
committee members:
(1) a criminal prosecutor involved in prosecuting
crimes against children;
(2) a sheriff;
(3) a justice of the peace;
(4) a medical examiner;
(5) a police chief;
(6) a pediatrician experienced in diagnosing and
treating child abuse and neglect;
(7) a child educator;
(8) a child mental health provider;
(9) a public health professional;
(10) a child protective services specialist;
(11) a sudden infant death syndrome family service
provider;
(12) a neonatologist;
(13) a child advocate;
(14) a chief juvenile probation officer;
(15) a child abuse prevention specialist;
(16) a representative of the Department of Public
Safety;
(17) a representative of the Texas Department of
Transportation;
(18) an emergency medical services provider; and
(19) a provider of services to, or an advocate for,
victims of family violence.
SECTION 5. Section 264.503, Family Code, is amended by
amending Subsections (d) and (e) and adding Subsection (h) to read
as follows:
(d) The Department of State Health Services shall:
(1) recognize the creation and participation of review
teams;
(2) promote and coordinate training to assist the
review teams in carrying out their duties;
(3) assist the committee in developing model protocols
for:
(A) the reporting and investigating of child
fatalities for law enforcement agencies, child protective
services, justices of the peace and medical examiners, and other
professionals involved in the investigations of child deaths;
(B) the collection of data regarding child
deaths; and
(C) the operation of the review teams;
(4) develop and implement procedures necessary for the
operation of the committee; [and]
(5) develop and implement training for justices of the
peace and medical examiners regarding inquests in child death
cases; and
(6) promote education of the public regarding the
incidence and causes of child deaths, the public role in preventing
child deaths, and specific steps the public can undertake to
prevent child deaths.
(e) In addition to the duties under Subsection (d), the
Department of State Health Services shall:
(1) collect data under this subchapter and coordinate
the collection of data under this subchapter with other data
collection activities; [and]
(2) perform annual statistical studies of the
incidence and causes of child fatalities using the data collected
under this subchapter; and
(3) evaluate the available child fatality data and use
the data to create public health strategies for the prevention of
child fatalities.
(h) Each member of the committee must be a member of the
child fatality review team in the county where the committee member
resides.
SECTION 6. Subchapter F, Chapter 264, Family Code, is
amended by adding Sections 264.5031 and 264.5032 to read as
follows:
Sec. 264.5031. COLLECTION OF NEAR FATALITY DATA. (a) The
Department of State Health Services shall develop a definition for
the term "near fatality" to allow for statewide consistency in
child fatality investigations.
(b) The Department of State Health Services shall include
near fatality child abuse or neglect cases in the child fatality
case database, for cases in which child abuse or neglect is
determined to have been the cause of the near fatality. The
Department of State Health Services must also develop a data
collection strategy for near fatality child abuse or neglect cases.
Sec. 264.5032. TRACKING OF CHILD FATALITY AND NEAR FATALITY
DATA. (a) The department shall produce a report relating to child
fatality and near fatality cases resulting from child abuse or
neglect containing the following information:
(1) any prior contact the department had with the
child's family and the manner in which the case was disposed,
including cases in which the department made the following
dispositions:
(A) priority none or administrative closure;
(B) call screened out;
(C) alternative or differential response
provided;
(D) unable to complete the investigation;
(E) unable to determine whether abuse or neglect
occurred;
(F) reason to believe abuse or neglect occurred;
or
(G) child removed and placed into substitute
care;
(2) for any case investigated by the department
involving the child or the child's family:
(A) the number of caseworkers assigned to the
case before the fatality or near fatality occurred;
(B) the level of education for each caseworker
assigned to the case and the caseworker's employment tenure; and
(C) the caseworker's caseload at the time the
case was opened and at the time the case was closed;
(3) for any case in which the department investigation
concluded that there was reason to believe that abuse or neglect
occurred, and the family was referred to family-based safety
services:
(A) the safety plan provided to the family;
(B) the services offered to the family; and
(C) the level of compliance with the safety plan
or completion of the services by the family;
(4) the number of contacts the department made with
children and families in family-based safety services cases; and
(5) the initial and attempted contacts the department
made with child abuse and neglect victims.
(b) The department shall make the data collected under
Subsection (a) available to allow research into the determining
factors related to child abuse fatalities or near fatalities, with
the purpose of:
(1) reducing child fatalities or near fatalities and
repeated referrals of a child or family to the department; and
(2) predicting future occurrences of child fatalities
and near fatalities to improve prevention and early intervention
strategies.
SECTION 7. Sections 264.505(a) and (c), Family Code, are
amended to read as follows:
(a) A multidisciplinary and multiagency child fatality
review team may be established for a county to review child deaths
in that county. A [review team for a] county [with a population of
less than 50,000] may join with an adjacent county or counties to
establish a combined review team.
(c) A review team must reflect the diversity of the county's
population and may include:
(1) a criminal prosecutor involved in prosecuting
crimes against children;
(2) a sheriff;
(3) a justice of the peace or medical examiner;
(4) a police chief;
(5) a pediatrician experienced in diagnosing and
treating child abuse and neglect;
(6) a child educator;
(7) a child mental health provider;
(8) a public health professional;
(9) a child protective services specialist;
(10) a sudden infant death syndrome family service
provider;
(11) a neonatologist;
(12) a child advocate;
(13) a chief juvenile probation officer; and
(14) a child abuse prevention specialist.
SECTION 8. Section 264.506(b), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) To achieve its purpose, a review team shall:
(1) adapt and implement, according to local needs and
resources, the model protocols developed by the department and the
committee;
(2) meet on a regular basis to review child fatality
cases and recommend methods to improve coordination of services and
investigations between agencies that are represented on the team;
(3) collect and maintain data as required by the
committee; [and]
(4) review and analyze the collected data to identify
any demographic trends in child fatality cases, including whether
there is a disproportionate number of child fatalities in a
particular population group or geographic area; and
(5) submit to the vital statistics unit data reports
on deaths reviewed as specified by the committee.
SECTION 9. Section 264.509, Family Code, is amended by
adding Subsection (b-1) to read as follows:
(b-1) The Department of State Health Services shall provide
a review team with electronic access to the preliminary death
certificate for a deceased child.
SECTION 10. (a) Section 264.514, Family Code, is amended by
adding Subsection (a-1) and amending Subsection (b) to read as
follows:
(a-1) The commissioners court of a county shall adopt
regulations relating to the timeliness for conducting an inquest
into the death of a child. The regulations adopted under this
subsection must be as stringent as the standards issued by the
National Association of Medical Examiners unless the commissioners
court determines that it would be cost prohibitive for the county to
comply with those standards.
(b) The medical examiner or justice of the peace shall
immediately notify an appropriate local law enforcement agency if
the medical examiner or justice of the peace determines that the
death is unexpected or the result of abuse or neglect, and that
agency shall investigate the child's death. The medical examiner or
justice of the peace shall notify the appropriate county child
fatality review team of the child's death not later than the 120th
day after the date the death is reported.
(b) A county must attempt to implement the timeliness
standards for inquests as described by Section 264.514(a-1), Family
Code, as added by this Act, as soon as possible after the effective
date of this Act.
SECTION 11. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.