Child Protection Cases in Minnesota - What Every Parent Should Know

 

WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT CHILD IN NEED OF PROTECTION OR SERVICES (CHIPS) CASES IN MINNESOTA

In Minnesota, it is far too easy for the County Social Services Department to open a Child in Need of Protection or Services (CHIPS) case against you based on one—oftentimes false or exaggerated—anonymous phone call. While the County is required to first “investigate” these anonymous allegations, many times—even if the allegations are truly false—they will “err on the side of caution” and file a CHIPS Petition against you anyways—after removing your children from your care. Defending against a CHIPS Petition is a daunting and grueling experience for even the most responsible parents. It is important to retain the services of an experienced child protection attorney to assist you each step of the way.

If you are a parent in a CHIPS case, here is what you need to know:

1.      When Can the County Open up a CHIPS Case Against Me?

The County can open up a CHIPS case against you if the County believes that your children are in need of protection or services. Some common reasons the County opens up a CHIPS case include (1) the children allegedly being victims of physical or sexual abuse, (2) the children allegedly not having the necessary food, clothing, shelter, or education that they need; (3) alleged medical neglect, or (4) the alleged disability of the child’s parent.

As you will notice, upon the commencement of a CHIPS case, the County does not need to “prove” anything as the removal of your children can be based upon mere allegations. However, you are entitled to a Trial where the County has the burden of proving the allegations stated in the CHIPS Petition by clear and convincing evidence. Hiring a private parent defense attorney to represent you at Trial provides you with the best chance at disproving the County’s allegations and getting the case dismissed.

2.      Can the County Actually Remove My Children From My Care Without First Going to Court?

Yes. If a Child Protective Services (CPS) investigator determines that your children is endangered in your care, your children could be removed from your care for an initial period of 72 hours—which does not include weekends and holidays. Upon the expiration of that time period, a court hearing is required to be held. At that court hearing, the Judge will determine whether your children should remain out of your home or whether they should return to your care.

3.      Where Will My Children Go If They Are Removed from My Home?

Once your children are removed from your home, the court will likely urge the County to find a relative that the children can go to while they are out of your care. It is important to provide the County with the names and contact information of any relatives who you would like your children to be placed with temporarily while they are out of your care. Ideally, these relatives should live close to you so you can easily visit your children while they are placed out of your home. If there is a specific relative who you do not want your children to be placed with, it is equally important to make this known to the County, as this wish will need to be honored consistent with the best interests of the children.

If there are no relatives who are willing or able to provide care for your children while they are out of your home, the children will likely be placed in non-relative foster care. It is almost never in a child’s best interest to remain with strangers for an extended period of time, as non-relative foster care providers almost never take as good of care of children as the children’s own family—and people who truly love them. Many times, the County will not even enter these homes prior to placing your children there. If your children have been placed out of your home with non-relative foster care providers, the attorneys at RAM Law PLLC will show up to each and every court hearing prepared to argue that the children are better off in your home.

4.      The County Gave Me a Case Plan—Do I Have to Follow It?

If your children are removed from your home, the County will likely provide you with a case plan or out of home placement plan with a series of goals, objectives, and tasks you need to follow prior to your children returning to your care on a permanent basis. If the County is concerned that you have been abusing drugs or alcohol, the County may require you to submit to alcohol or drug testing, complete a chemical dependency evaluation, or even enroll in treatment. If the County is concerned about the condition of your mental health, the County may ask you to complete a psychological evaluation or regularly attend individual therapy sessions. If the County believes that you have domestically abused your children, the County may require you to enroll in a 24-week domestic violence program.

Up until your children are actually determined by the Court to be children in need of protection or services, the case plan is completely voluntary. With that said, parents are strongly encouraged to comply with the voluntary case plan as such cooperation typically leads to your children being returned to your care on a much quicker basis. It is important to note that, if during a CHIPS case (many times following a Trial), the Judge determines that your children are in need of protection or services, he or she will likely order you to follow the case plan. At this point, it is no longer simply “recommended” that you follow the case plan but it is crucial—as failure to follow a court ordered case plan can result in your parental rights being terminated.

Of course, case plans do need to be reasonable, so if there is a component of the case plan that appears to be overreaching or unnecessary, it is important to consult with an experienced CPS attorney who can object to any unnecessary components of the case plan.

5.      Who is the Guardian ad Litem?

While the County attorney will advocate for the County’s interests and your private defense attorney will advocate for your interests, the Court will also appoint a guardian ad litem. The guardian ad litem is assigned to the case to interview the parties involved, review important documents, interview the children, and ultimately provide the Court with a recommendation regarding what he or she believes to be in the child’s best interest. Many Judges put a lot of weight on the guardian ad litem’s opinion. Therefore, it is extremely important to be cooperative and friendly to this individual as they will play a huge role in the Judge’s determination regarding whether or not your children get to come home.

Upon the removal of their children, many parents believe that everyone involved in the case is simply working for the County and parents find it difficult to trust anyone. All too often, parents are defensive and combative with guardian ad litems upon first contact which is not the best first impression to make. The attorneys at RAM Law PLLC cannot stress enough the importance of the guardian ad litem in the current child protection system.

6.      The County is Not Doing Anything to Reunite My Children With Me—What Can I do?

In Minnesota, while a CHIPS case is open, the County is required—in most cases—to make reasonable efforts to reunify your children with you at the earliest time consistent with the children’s safety. In fact, even prior to removal, the County is required to make reasonable efforts to prevent placement of the children of the children in foster care by working with the family to develop and implement a safety plan—if there are services or efforts available which could allow the children to safely remain in the home. If the County has not made reasonable efforts to prevent placement or reunify your children with you, an experienced child protection attorney may be needed to advocate on your behalf.

7.      Will I be Able to Visit My Children While They are in Foster Care?

In the vast majority of cases, you will be allowed to visit your children while they are in foster care. While these visits typically start out as being supervised upon the commencement of a CHIPS case, more progress on the case plan typically leads to an expansion of visits, up to and including unsupervised and overnight visits. With regard to supervised visits, it is important to note that—in many occasions—what occurs during these visits are transcribed and put into supervised visit notes. These supervised visit notes can either help you or hurt you when it comes to court proceedings, so it is important to be the “perfect parent” during your supervised visits.

As the case progresses, and as you progress on your case plan, it is likely that the Judge will authorize a trial home visit (THV). A trial home visit means that, while the County still has custody of your children, your children are living in your home. However, you should note that if you stop following the case plan upon your children’s return to your home, the County can, once again, remove your children from your care and revoke the THV. The last step prior to a CHIPS case closing is typically an arrangement known as protective supervision. If your children are placed under protective supervision of the County, they are placed in your home but the County is still provided access to the children and may still impose certain conditions on the children’s placement with you. However, unlike a THV, if the County seeks to terminate protective supervision, they need a court order prior to the children being removed from your home once again.

8.      How Long Can a CHIPS Case Last?

If a child is in foster care, the law typically provides the County with 11 months to resolve issues and to make it safe for the children to return home. If your children have been out of your home for 11 months, the Court will order that the County either returns your children to your care or that they file a permanency petition for the permanent placement of your children out of your care. This could include a petition to transfer custody of your children to a relative. However, a much more common permanency petition is a petition to terminate your parental rights so your children can be freed up for adoption. If you were self-represented during the 11-month CHIPS case, you should absolutely not go into a termination of parental rights proceeding without an attorney. The Attorneys at RAM Law PLLC are experienced in providing the best possible defense to parents in termination of parental rights matters.

9.      When Can My Parental Rights be Terminated in Minnesota?

In Minnesota, there are very specific legal grounds under which your parental rights can be terminated. Specifically, if you have abandoned the child (meaning you intended to forsake the duties of parenthood), a termination of parental rights (TPR) petition can be filed against you. If you have substantially and continuously neglected to comply with parental duties, a TPR petition can be filed against you as well, so long as reasonable efforts by the County have failed to correct the conditions that led to the CHIPS Petition being filed in the first place. If you have not followed your court-ordered case plan, it is likely that the County will file a permanency petition against you.

Many times, the County will try to allege that your parental rights should be terminated because you are palpably unfit to be a party to the parent-child relationship which are likely to be issues for the reasonably foreseeable future. This is extremely difficult for the County to prove, but an experienced termination of parental rights defense attorney is still necessary—as the attorneys at RAM Law PLLC are equipped with the legal knowledge and case law to defend against this standard—which the Supreme Court has said is an “onerous” burden for the County to meet.

10.  What Should I do if I am a Party to a CHIPS Case or Termination of Parental Rights Case?

If you are a party to a CHIPS Case or TPR Case, you simply need an attorney. The attorneys at RAM Law PLLC are well-versed in the law and will vigorously defend against the County as we fight for your children to be returned to where they belong—in your care. Call the CHIPS attorneys at RAM Law PLLC at (651) 468-2104 to schedule your initial case evaluation and consultation.