2016 Delaware Code
Title 16 - Health and Safety
CHAPTER 9. ABUSE OF CHILDREN
Subchapter III Child Protection Accountability Commission
§ 932. Investigation and review of the death or near death of an abused or neglected child.

(a) The Attorney General, the Department of Services for Children, Youth and Their Families, and any other state or local agency with responsibility for investigating child deaths shall report to the Commission any death or near death of a child who is determined to have been abused or neglected within 14 days of that determination. Within 6 months of any such report to the Commission, the Commission shall conclude an investigation and review of the facts and circumstances of the death or near death incident. For good cause shown to the Commission, the 6-month period for the completion of an investigation and review under this subsection may be extended from 6 to 9 months. If the need for an extension under this subsection is attributable to an ongoing criminal prosecution, the extension may be for a period of up to 6 months following the completion of the prosecution. In cases in which the time for the Commission's complete investigation and review is extended under this subsection, the Commission shall issue initial recommendations if it determines that such are necessary under the circumstances.

(b) No person identified by the Attorney General's office as a potential witness in any criminal prosecution arising from the death or near death of an abused or neglected child shall be questioned, deposed, or interviewed by or for the Commission in connection with its investigation and review of such death or near death until the completion of the prosecution.

(c) Notwithstanding any requirement of § 931(b) of this title to the contrary, the Commission shall, if necessary, make system-wide recommendations arising from an investigation and review conducted under this section.

(1) The Commission shall provide these recommendations, if any, to the Governor, the General Assembly, and the public within 20 days of the approval of the recommendations made under this section.

(2) All recommendations made by the Commission under this subsection shall comply with applicable state and federal confidentiality provisions, including those set forth in § 934 of this title and § 9017(e) of Title 29.

(3) Notwithstanding any provision of this subchapter to the contrary, no recommendation made by the Commission under this subsection shall specifically identify any individual or nongovernmental agency, organization, or entity.

(4) In addition to the Commission's release of recommendations, the Commission shall release to the public summary information and findings resulting from reviews of child deaths and near deaths due to abuse and neglect as required by 42 U.S.C. § 5106a(b)(2)(B). The Commission may release summary information and findings only upon completion of the prosecution.

(d) Notwithstanding this section or § 931(b)(7) of this title, the Child Death Review Commission may review deaths of abused or neglected children, for good cause shown, as determined by the agreement of the Commission and the Child Death Review Commission.

(e) For purposes of this subsection, "completion of the prosecution" means the decision to file no information or seek no indictment, conviction or adjudication, acquittal, dismissal of an information or indictment by a court, the conditional dismissal under a program established by Delaware law or a court, or the nolle prosequi of an information or indictment by the Attorney General.

80 Del. Laws, c. 187, § 9.;