{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-620.055","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 620.055","heading":"External child fatality and near fatality review panel -- Creation --","body":"Members -- Meetings -- Duties -- Responsibilities -- Information required to be\nprovided to members -- Report and response -- Annual reports --\nConfidentiality -- Destruction o f information following conclusion of panel's\nexamination -- Application of open records and open meetings law --\nLimitation of liability -- Proceedings are privileged -- Annual evaluation of\npanel's work.\n(1) An external child fatality and near fa tality review panel is hereby created and\nestablished for the purpose of conducting comprehensive reviews of child fatalities\nand near fatalities, reported to the Cabinet for Health and Family Services,\nsuspected to be a result of abuse or neglect. The pan el shall be attached to the\nJustice and Public Safety Cabinet for staff and administrative purposes.\n(2) The external child fatality and near fatality review panel shall be composed of the\nfollowing five (5) ex officio nonvoting members and seventeen (17) voting\nmembers:\n(a) Two (2) members of the Kentucky General Assembly, one (1) appointed by\nthe President of the Senate and one (1) appointed by the Speaker of the House\nof Representatives, who shall be ex officio nonvoting members;\n(b) The commissioner of the Department for Community Based Services, who\nshall be an ex officio nonvoting member;\n(c) The commissioner of the Department for Public Health, who shall be an ex\nofficio nonvoting member;\n(d) A family court judge selected by the Chief Justice of the K entucky Supreme\nCourt, who shall be an ex officio nonvoting member;\n(e) A pediatrician from the University of Kentucky's Department of Pediatrics\nwho is licensed and experienced in forensic medicine relating to child abuse\nand neglect to be selected by the  Attorney General from a list of three (3)\nnames provided by the dean of the University of Kentucky School of\nMedicine;\n(f) A pediatrician from the University of Louisville's Department of Pediatrics\nwho is licensed and experienced in forensic medicine rel ating to child abuse\nand neglect to be selected by the Attorney General from a list of three (3)\nnames provided by the dean of the University of Louisville School of\nMedicine;\n(g) The state medical examiner or designee;\n(h) A court-appointed special advoca te (CASA) program director to be selected\nby the Attorney General from a list of three (3) names provided by the\nKentucky CASA Network;\n(i) A peace officer with experience investigating child abuse and neglect\nfatalities and near fatalities to be selected by the Attorney General from a list\nof three (3) names provided by the commissioner of the Kentucky State\nPolice;\n(j) A representative from Prevent Child Abuse Kentucky, Inc. to be selected by\nthe Attorney General from a list of three (3) names provided by the president\nof the Prevent Child Abuse Kentucky, Inc. board of directors;\n(k) A practicing local prosecutor to be selected by the Attorney General;\n(l) The executive director of the Kentucky Domestic Violence Association or the\nexecutive director's designee;\n(m) The chairperson of the State Child Fatality Review Team established in\naccordance with KRS 211.684 or the chairperson's designee;\n(n) A practicing social work clinician to be selected by the Attorney General from\na list of three (3) names provided by the Board of Social Work;\n(o) A practicing addiction counselor to be selected by the Attorney General from\na list of three (3) names pr ovided by the Kentucky Association of Addiction\nProfessionals;\n(p) A representative from the family resource and youth service centers to be\nselected by the Attorney General from a list of three (3) names submitted by\nthe Cabinet for Health and Family Services;\n(q) A representative of a community mental health center to be selected by the\nAttorney General from a list of three (3) names provided by the Kentucky\nAssociation of Regional Mental Health and Mental Retardation Programs,\nInc.;\n(r) A member of a cit izen foster care review board selected by the Chief Justice\nof the Kentucky Supreme Court;\n(s) An at-large representative who shall serve as chairperson to be selected by the\nSecretary of State;\n(t) The president of the Kentucky Coroners Association; and\n(u) A practicing medication -assisted treatment provider to be selected by the\nAttorney General from a list of three (3) names provided by the Kentucky\nBoard of Medical Licensure.\n(3) (a) The appointing authority or the appointing authorities, as the case ma y be,\nshall have appointed panel members. Initial terms of members, other than\nthose serving ex officio, shall be staggered to provide continuity. Initial\nappointments shall be: five (5) members for terms of one (1) year, five (5)\nmembers for terms of two (2) years, and five (5) members for terms of three\n(3) years, these terms to expire, in each instance, on June 30 and thereafter\nuntil a successor is appointed and accepts appointment.\n(b) Upon the expiration of these initial staggered terms, successors sh all be\nappointed by the respective appointing authorities for terms of two (2) years\nand until successors are appointed and accept their appointments. Members\nshall be eligible for reappointment. Vacancies in the membership of the panel\nshall be filled in the same manner as the original appointments.\n(c) At any time, a panel member shall recuse himself or herself from the review\nof a case if the panel member believes he or she has a personal or private\nconflict of interest.\n(d) If a voting panel member is a bsent from two (2) or more consecutive,\nregularly scheduled meetings, the member shall be considered to have\nresigned and shall be replaced with a new member in the same manner as the\noriginal appointment.\n(e) If a voting panel member is proven to have vio lated subsection (13) of this\nsection, the member shall be removed from the panel, and the member shall\nbe replaced with a new member in the same manner as the original\nappointment.\n(4) The panel shall meet at least quarterly and may meet upon the call of the\nchairperson of the panel.\n(5) Members of the panel shall receive no compensation for their duties related to the\npanel, but may be reimbursed for expenses incurred in accordance with state\nguidelines and administrative regulations.\n(6) Each panel membe r shall be provided copies of all information set out in this\nsubsection, including but not limited to records and information, upon request, to be\ngathered, unredacted, and submitted to the panel within thirty (30) days by the\nCabinet for Health and Family Services from the Department for Community Based\nServices or any agency, organization, or entity involved with a child subject to a\nfatality or near fatality:\n(a) Cabinet for Health and Family Services records and documentation regarding\nthe deceased or injured child and his or her caregivers, residents of the home,\nand persons supervising the child at the time of the incident that include all\nrecords and documentation set out in this paragraph:\n1. All prior and ongoing investigations, services, or contacts;\n2. All records of services to the family provided by agencies or individuals\ncontracted by the Cabinet for Health and Family Services; and\n3. All documentation of actions taken as a result of child fatality internal\nreviews conducted pursuant to KRS 620.050(12)(b);\n(b) Licensing reports from the Cabinet for Health and Family Services, Office of\nInspector General, if an incident occurred in a licensed facility;\n(c) All available records regarding protective services provided out of state;\n(d) All records of services provi ded by the Department for Juvenile Justice\nregarding the deceased or injured child and his or her caregivers, residents of\nthe home, and persons involved with the child at the time of the incident;\n(e) Autopsy reports;\n(f) Emergency medical service, fire d epartment, law enforcement, coroner, and\nother first responder reports, including but not limited to photos and\ninterviews with family members and witnesses;\n(g) Medical records regarding the deceased or injured child, including but not\nlimited to all records and documentation set out in this paragraph:\n1. Primary care records, including progress notes; developmental\nmilestones; growth charts that include head circumference; all\nlaboratory and X-ray requests and results; and birth record that includes\nrecord of delivery type, complications, and initial physical exam of\nbaby;\n2. In-home provider care notes about observations of the family, bonding,\nothers in home, and concerns;\n3. Hospitalization and emergency department records;\n4. Dental records;\n5. Specialist records; and\n6. All photographs of injuries of the child that are available;\n(h) Educational records of the deceased or injured child, or other children residing\nin the home where the incident occurred, including but not limited to the\nrecords and documents set out in this paragraph:\n1. Attendance records;\n2. Special education services;\n3. School-based health records; and\n4. Documentation of any interaction and services provided to the children\nand family.\nThe release of educational records shall compl y with the Family Educational\nRights and Privacy Act, 20 U.S.C. sec. 1232g and its implementing\nregulations;\n(i) Head Start records or records from any other child care or early child care\nprovider;\n(j) Records of any Family, Circuit, or District Court inv olvement with the\ndeceased or injured child and his or her caregivers, residents of the home and\npersons involved with the child at the time of the incident that include but are\nnot limited to the juvenile and family court records and orders set out in thi s\nparagraph, pursuant to KRS Chapters 199, 403, 405, 406, and 600 to 645:\n1. Petitions;\n2. Court reports by the Department for Community Based Services,\nguardian ad litem, court -appointed special advocate, and the Citizen\nFoster Care Review Board;\n3. All o rders of the court, including temporary, dispositional, or\nadjudicatory; and\n4. Documentation of annual or any other review by the court;\n(k) Home visit records from the Department for Public Health or other services;\n(l) All information on prior allegations of abuse or neglect and deaths of children\nof adults residing in the household;\n(m) All law enforcement records and documentation regarding the deceased or\ninjured child and his or her caregivers, residents of the home, and persons\ninvolved with the child at the time of the incident;\n(n) Mental health records regarding the deceased or injured child and his or her\ncaregivers, residents of the home, and persons involved with the child at the\ntime of the incident; and\n(o) All supervisory consult notes, documents, and information related to all fatal\nand near fatal cases.\n(7) The panel may seek the advice of experts, such as persons specializing i n the fields\nof psychiatric and forensic medicine, nursing, psychology, social work, education,\nlaw enforcement, family law, or other related fields, if the facts of a case warrant\nadditional expertise.\n(8) The panel shall have full access to The Workers I nformation System, known as\nTWIST, and the internet The Workers Information System, known as iTWIST, that\nare maintained by the Cabinet for Health and Family Services.\n(9) The panel shall be provided with the quarterly System Safety Review Report that is\nsubmitted to the Safety Action Group (SAG) and with any additional reports,\nminutes, and recommendations from the SAG meetings that are not part of the\nrecommendations incorporated in the Cabinet for Health and Family Services\nAnnual Fatality Report.\n(10) The panel shall post updates after each meeting to the website of the Justice and\nPublic Safety Cabinet regarding case reviews, findings, and recommendations.\n(11) The panel chairperson, or other requested persons, shall report a summary of the\npanel's disc ussions and proposed or actual recommendations to the Interim Joint\nCommittee on Families and Children of the Kentucky General Assembly monthly\nor at the request of a committee co -chair. The goal of the committee shall be to\nensure impartiality regarding the operations of the panel during its review process.\n(12) (a) The panel shall publish an annual report by February 1 of each year consisting\nof case reviews, findings, and recommendations for system and process\nimprovements to help prevent child fatalities and near fatalities that are due to\nabuse and neglect. The report shall be submitted to the Governor, the\nsecretary of the Cabinet for Health and Family Services, the Chief Justice of\nthe Supreme Court, the Attorney General, the State Child Abuse and Neg lect\nPrevention Board established pursuant to KRS 15.905, and the director of the\nLegislative Research Commission for distribution to the Interim Joint\nCommittee on Families and Children and the Interim Joint Committee on\nJudiciary.\n(b) The panel shall determine which agency is responsible for implementing each\nrecommendation, and shall forward each recommendation in writing to the\nappropriate agency.\n(c) Any agency that receives a recommendation from the panel shall, within\nninety (90) days of receipt:\n1. Respond to the panel with a written notice of intent to implement the\nrecommendation, an explanation of how the recommendation will be\nimplemented, and an approximate time frame of implementation; or\n2. Respond to the panel with a written notice that the a gency does not\nintend to implement the recommendation, and a detailed explanation of\nwhy the recommendation cannot be implemented.\n(13) (a) Information and record copies that are confidential under state or federal law\nand are provided to the external child fatality and near fatality review panel by\nthe Cabinet for Health and Family Services, the Department for Community\nBased Services, or any agency, organization, or entity for review shall not\nbecome the information and records of the panel and shall not lose their\nconfidentiality by virtue of the panel's access to the information and records.\n(b) The original information and records used to generate information and record\ncopies provided to the panel in accordance with subsection (6) of this section\nshall be maintained by the appropriate agency in accordance with state and\nfederal law and shall be subject to the Kentucky Open Records Act, KRS\n61.870 to 61.884.\n(c) All open records requests shall be made to the appropriate agency, not to the\nexternal child fatality and near fatality review panel or any of the panel\nmembers.\n(d) Information and record copies provided to the panel for review shall be\nexempt from the Kentucky Open Records Act, KRS 61.870 to 61.884.\n(e) At the conclusion of the panel's examinati on, all copies of information and\nrecords provided to the panel involving an individual case shall be destroyed\nby the Justice and Public Safety Cabinet.\n(14) (a) Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, the portions of the\nexternal child fatality and near fatality review panel meetings during which an\nindividual child fatality or near fatality case is reviewed or discussed by panel\nmembers may be a closed session and subject to the provisions of KRS\n61.815(1) and shall only occur following the  conclusion of an open session.\nAt the conclusion of the closed session, the panel shall immediately convene\nan open session and give a summary of what occurred during the closed\nsession.\n(b) The external child fatality and near fatality review panel shall  develop a\nprocedure for discussion of cases that are being reviewed by the panel with\nthe agency that was responsible for the investigation of the case and shall\ninclude the following requirements:\n1. Any discussions about a case shall be held in a closed session;\n2. Anything said by an employee of the investigating agency shall not be\nused as evidence in any civil, criminal, or administrative hearing;\n3. Any employee of the investigating agency may attend with the\nemployee or employees who investigated the case being discussed; and\n4. The investigating agency shall not be asked to attend until after final\njudgment was entered by the court in that case or the Commonwealth\ndeclined to prosecute the case.\n(15) Each member of the external child fatality and ne ar fatality review panel, any\nperson attending a closed panel session, and any person presenting information or\nrecords on an individual child fatality or near fatality shall not release information\nor records not available under the Kentucky Open Records Act, KRS 61.870 to\n61.884 to the public.\n(16) A member of the external child fatality and near fatality review panel shall not be\nprohibited from making a good -faith report to any state or federal agency of any\ninformation or issue that the panel member be lieves should be reported or disclosed\nto facilitate effectiveness and transparency in Kentucky's child protective services.\n(17) A member of the external child fatality and near fatality review panel shall not be\nheld liable for any civil damages or criminal penalties pursuant to KRS 620.990 as\na result of any action taken or omitted in the performance of the member's duties\npursuant to this section and KRS 620.050, except for violations of subsection (13),\n(14), or (15) of this section.\n(18) The proceedings, records, opinions, and deliberations of the external child fatality\nand near fatality review panel shall be privileged and sha ll not be subject to\ndiscovery, subpoena, or introduction into evidence in any civil or criminal actions\nin any manner that would directly or indirectly identify specific persons or cases\nreviewed by the panel. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed  to restrict or\nlimit the right to discover or use in any civil action any evidence that is\ndiscoverable independent of the proceedings of the panel.\n(19) The Legislative Oversight and Investigations Committee of the Kentucky General\nAssembly shall conduct an annual evaluation of the external child fatality and near\nfatality review panel established pursuant to this section to monitor the operations,\nprocedures, and recommendations of the panel and shall report its findings to the\nGeneral Assembly.","path":["KRS Chapter 620"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=57456","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T21:00:08Z","sha256":"cfe564aa3da95b5892267247ec5775277c6ad91c16070289ed9786e1599f852d","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-620.052","next":"us-ky/krs-620.060"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}