Statutes | Lummi Nation Code of Laws Title 8 Chapter 8.05 ยง 8.05.040 | 2020

(a) Upon a factual showing that the child&rsquos health, welfare or safety would be put into danger if the child&rsquos parents, guardian or other person responsible for the child were given advance notice of the application, the Children&rsquos Court may grant an ex parte application by the Lummi Children Services Department to take the child into temporary custody if the Court finds probable cause exists to believe the minor is a child in need of protection and the conditions in which the child is found present an imminent danger to the child&rsquos health, welfare or safety. The application must state what efforts were attempted to prevent the imminent danger and the factual basis for the allegation that the child&rsquos health, welfare or safety would be put into danger if the child&rsquos parents, guardian or other person responsible for the child were given advance notice of the application. The Children&rsquos Court order may include:

(1) authorization to enter specified premises to remove the child and

(2) a grant of temporary custody to the Lummi Nation pending a preliminary hearing.

 

(b) In the absence of a court order, a child in need of protection may only be taken into temporary custody if a law enforcement officer finds probable cause that:

(1) a failure to remove would place the child in danger of imminent and serious harm or

(2) the child is in need of adult supervision and has no appropriate adult supervision.

 

(c) The person taking a child into custody under the provisions of this section shall immediately contact the entity designated by Lummi Nation for placement of children, which shall specify an appropriate placement for the child. The person shall take the child to the specified placement. In making the placement decision, the entity shall:

(1) place the child with the person or persons requested by the child&rsquos parent(s) unless parent&rsquos action or conditions indicate that the parent&rsquos judgment is impaired to a degree that makes the parent&rsquos decision unreliable or unwise or

(2) Place the child in accordance with the priorities established in LCL 8.01.200.

 

(d) As soon as practicable after taking a child into custody, the law enforcement officer or child welfare worker taking the child shall notify the child&rsquos parents, grandparents, guardian or other person responsible for the child that the child has been taken into custody, the reasons for taking the child into custody, and the name and telephone number of the entity which is managing the case. Efforts to notify the responsible person shall include contacts at the home, place of employment, or other locations where the person is known to frequent with regularity. If notification cannot be provided to the responsible person, the notice shall be given to a member of the extended family of the responsible person.

 

(e) As soon as practicable after taking a child into custody, the Lummi Children Services Department shall serve a copy of the Summons and Petition on the parents of the child, together with any other pleadings or orders that have been filed or entered in the case.

 

(f) Within seventy-two hours, excluding weekends and judicial holidays, after a child has been taken into temporary custody and remains in temporary custody, the Children&rsquos Court must conduct a shelter-care hearing. The Court shall make a finding whether it is contrary to the welfare of the child to remain in the family home, whether the child&rsquos welfare can be served by a family member who is willing to assume responsibility for the child, or whether placement of the child out of the home would be in the best interest of the child. The court&rsquos finding must be based on the individual circumstances of the case, and be stated in the court order. If the court finds that formal placement is not necessary, the court shall release the child from the temporary custody of the Lummi Nation. If, at the time of the shelter-care court hearing, the child&rsquos parents, grandparents, guardian, or custodian have not been notified, the court shall hear evidence as to the efforts to investigate the whereabouts and give notice to the parents, grandparents, guardian or legal custodian.

 

(g) The child shall be placed within reasonable proximity to the child&rsquos home, taking into account any special needs of the child and the priorities established by LCL 8.01.200. If a child cannot be returned home, the child shall be placed in the least restrictive setting which most closely approximates a family, and in which the child&rsquos special needs, if any, may be met.

 

(h) A child may not remain in temporary custody for more than 45 days without further order of the court authorizing continued temporary custody.