US Laws, Codes, Statutes & Cases

      38-1563.   Authorized dispositions. (a) After consideration of any evidence offered relating to disposition, the court may retain jurisdiction and place the child in the custody of the child's parent subject to terms and conditions which the court prescribes to assure the proper care and protection of the child, including supervision of the child and the parent by a court services officer, or may order the child and the parent to participate in programs operated by the secretary or another appropriate individual or agency. The terms and conditions may require any special treatment or care which the child needs for the child's physical, mental or emotional health.

      (b)   The duration of any period of supervision or other terms or conditions shall be for an initial period of no more than 12 months. The court, at the expiration of that period, upon a hearing and for good cause shown, may make successive extensions of the supervision or other terms or conditions for up to 12 months at a time.

      (c)   The court may order the child and the parents of any child who has been adjudged a child in need of care to attend counseling sessions as the court directs. The expense of the counseling may be assessed as an expense in the case. No mental health center shall charge a greater fee for court-ordered counseling than the center would have charged to the person receiving counseling if the person had requested counseling on the person's own initiative.

      (d)   If the court finds that placing the child in the custody of a parent will not assure protection from physical, mental or emotional abuse or neglect or sexual abuse or is contrary to the welfare of the child or that placement would be in the best interests of the child, the court shall enter an order awarding custody of the child, until the further order of the court, to one of the following:

      (1)   A relative of the child or a person with whom the child has close emotional ties;

      (2)   any other suitable person;

      (3)   a shelter facility; or

      (4)   the secretary.

      If the child is adjudged to be a child in need of care, the court shall not place the child in the custody of the secretary if the court has received from the secretary, written documentation of the services and/or community services plan offered or delivered to prevent the need for such custody unless the court finds that the services documented by the secretary are insufficient to protect the safety of the child and that being in the custody of the parent with such services in place is contrary to the welfare or that placement is in the best interests of the child. The court shall have the authority to require any person or entity agreeing to participate in the plan to perform as set out in the plan. The secretary shall present to the court in writing the specific actions taken to maintain the family unit and prevent the unnecessary removal of the child from the child's home.

      In making such a custody order, the court shall give preference, to the extent that the court finds it is in the best interests of the child, first to granting custody to a relative of the child and second to granting custody of the child to a person with whom the child has close emotional ties. If the court has awarded legal custody based on the finding specified by this subsection, the legal custodian shall not return the child to the home of that parent without the written consent of the court.

      (e)   When the custody of the child is awarded to the secretary:

      (1)   The court may recommend to the secretary where the child should be placed.

      (2)   The secretary shall notify the court in writing of any placement of the child or, within 10 days of the order awarding the custody of the child to the secretary, any proposed placement of the child, whichever occurs first.

      (3)   The court may determine if such placement is contrary to the welfare or in the best interests of the child, and if the court determines that such placement is not in the best interests of the child, the court shall notify the secretary who shall then make an alternative placement subject to the procedures established in this paragraph. In determining if such placement is in the best interests of the child, the court, after providing the parties with an opportunity to be heard, shall consider the health and safety needs of the child and the resources available to meet the needs of children in the custody of the secretary.

      (4)   When the secretary provides the court with a plan to provide services to a child or family which the court finds is in place and which will assure the safety of the child, the court shall approve the return of the child to the child's home. The court shall have the authority to require any person or entity agreeing to participate in the plan to perform as set out in the plan.

      (f)   If custody of a child is awarded under this section to a person other than the child's parent, the court may grant any individual reasonable rights to visit the child upon motion of the individual and a finding that the visitation rights would be in the best interests of the child.

      (g)   If the court issues an order of custody pursuant to this section, the court may enter an order restraining any alleged perpetrator of physical, sexual, mental or emotional abuse of the child from residing in the child's home; visiting, contacting, harassing or intimidating the child, other family member or witness; or attempting to visit, contact, harass or intimidate the child, other family member or witness.

      (h)   The court shall not enter an order removing a child from the custody of a parent pursuant to this section unless the court first finds from evidence presented by the petitioner that reasonable efforts have been made to maintain the family unit and prevent the unnecessary removal of the child from the child's home or that reasonable efforts are not necessary because reintegration is not a viable alternative; or that an emergency exists which threatens the safety of the child and that allowing the child to remain in the home is contrary to the welfare of the child or that placement would be in the best interest of the child. If the child is placed in the custody of the secretary, the court shall provide the secretary with a copy of any orders entered for the purpose of documenting these orders within 10 days of making the order. Reintegration may not be a viable alternative when the: (1) Parent has been found by a court to have committed murder in the first degree, K.S.A. 21-3401, and amendments thereto, murder in the second degree, K.S.A. 21-3402, and amendments thereto, capital murder, K.S.A. 21-3439, and amendments thereto, voluntary manslaughter, K.S.A. 21-3403, and amendments thereto, or violated a law of another state which prohibits such murder or manslaughter of a child; (2) parent aided or abetted, attempted, conspired or solicited to commit such murder or voluntary manslaughter of a child as provided in subsection (h)(1); (3) parent committed a felony battery that resulted in bodily injury to the child or another child; (4) parent has subjected the child or another child to aggravated circumstances as defined in K.S.A. 38-1502, and amendments thereto; (5) parental rights of the parent to another child have been terminated involuntarily or (6) the child has been in extended out of home placement as defined in K.S.A. 38-1502, and amendments thereto. Such findings shall be included in any order entered by the court.

      (i)   In addition to or in lieu of any other order authorized by this section, if a child is adjudged to be a child in need of care by reason of a violation of the uniform controlled substances act (K.S.A. 65-4101 et seq., and amendments thereto, or K.S.A. 41-719, 41-804, 41-2719, 65-4152, 65-4153, 65-4154 or 65-4155, and amendments thereto, the court shall order the child to submit to and complete an alcohol and drug evaluation by a community-based alcohol and drug safety action program certified pursuant to K.S.A. 8-1008, and amendments thereto, and to pay a fee not to exceed the fee established by that statute for such evaluation. If the court finds that the child and those legally liable for the child's support are indigent, the fee may be waived. In no event shall the fee be assessed against the secretary or the department of social and rehabilitation services.

      (j)   In addition to any other order authorized by this section, if child support has been requested and the parent or parents have a duty to support the child, the court may order one or both parents to pay child support and, when custody is awarded to the secretary, the court shall order one or both parents to pay child support. The court shall determine, for each parent separately, whether the parent is already subject to an order to pay support for the child. If the parent is not presently ordered to pay support for any child who is a ward of the court and the court has personal jurisdiction over the parent, the court shall order the parent to pay child support in an amount determined under K.S.A. 38-1595, and amendments thereto. Except for good cause shown, the court shall issue an immediate income withholding order pursuant to K.S.A. 23-4,105 et seq., and amendments thereto, for each parent ordered to pay support under this subsection, regardless of whether a payor has been identified for the parent. A parent ordered to pay child support under this subsection shall be notified, at the hearing or otherwise, that the child support order may be registered pursuant to K.S.A. 38-1597, and amendments thereto. The parent shall also be informed that, after registration, the income withholding order may be served on the parent's employer without further notice to the parent and the child support order may be enforced by any method allowed by law. Failure to provide this notice shall not affect the validity of the child support order.

      History:   L. 1982, ch. 182, § 47; L. 1984, ch. 152, § 4; L. 1985, ch. 144, § 3; L. 1986, ch. 161, § 6; L. 1989, ch. 95, § 8; L. 1992, ch. 312, § 8; L. 1995, ch. 268, § 1; L. 1998, ch. 139, § 4; L. 2000, ch. 150, § 13; June 1.