{"data":{"id":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-10a-10a-1-2-102v2","jurisdiction":"us-ok","citation":"Okla. Stat. tit. 10A, § 10A-1-2-102v2","heading":"Assessment and investigations - Determinations and","body":"referrals by Department of Human Services – Investigations by law\n\nenforcement agencies.\n\nA. 1. Upon receipt of a report that a child may be abused,\n\nneglected or drug-endangered, the Department of Human Services shall\n\nconduct a safety analysis.\n\n2. The Department may employ or contract with active or retired\n\nsocial work, medical and law enforcement professionals who shall be\n\nstrategically placed throughout the state to:\n\na. provide investigation support and to assist\n\ncaseworkers with assessment decisions and intervention\n\nactivities,\n\nb. serve as consultants to caseworkers in all aspects of\n\ntheir duties, and\n\nc. designate persons who shall act as liaisons within the\n\nDepartment whose primary functions are to develop\n\nrelationships with local law enforcement agencies and\n\ncourts.\n\n3. The Department shall forward a report of its assessment or\n\ninvestigation and findings to any district attorney's office which\n\nmay have jurisdiction to file a petition pursuant to Section 1-4-101\n\nof this title.\n\n4. The Department shall determine the military status of\n\nparents whose children are subject to abuse or neglect. If the\n\nDepartment determines that a parent or guardian is currently serving\n\non active duty in the United States military, the Department shall\n\nnotify a United States Department of Defense family advocacy program\n\nthat there is an investigation into the parent or guardian. The\n\nDepartment shall forward a report of its assessment or investigation\n\nand findings to the appropriate military law enforcement entity.\n\n5. Whenever the Department determines there is a child that\n\nmeets the definition of a \"drug-endangered child\", as defined in\n\nSection 1-1-105 of this title, or a child has been diagnosed with\n\nfetal alcohol syndrome and the referral is accepted for\n\ninvestigation, the Department shall conduct an investigation of the\n\nallegations and shall not limit the evaluation of the circumstances\n\nto an assessment.\n\n6. Whenever the Department determines an infant has been\n\ndiagnosed with Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome or a Fetal Alcohol\n\nSpectrum Disorder, but the referral is not accepted for\n\ninvestigation, the Department shall develop a plan of safe care that\n\naddresses both the infant and affected family member or caregiver.\n\nThe plan of safe care shall address, at a minimum, the health and\n\nsubstance use treatment needs of the infant and affected family\n\nmember or caregiver.\n\nB. 1. If, upon receipt of a report alleging abuse or neglect\n\nor during the assessment or investigation, the Department determines\n\nthat:\n\na. the alleged perpetrator is someone other than a person\n\nresponsible for the child's health, safety, or\n\nwelfare, and\n\nb. the alleged abuse or neglect of the child does not\n\nappear to be attributable to failure on the part of a\n\nperson responsible for the child's health, safety, or\n\nwelfare to provide protection for the child,\n\nthe Department shall immediately make a referral, in writing, to the\n\nappropriate local law enforcement agency for the purpose of\n\nconducting a possible criminal investigation. The Department shall\n\nmaintain a record of its transmission of each report to law\n\nenforcement.\n\n2. After making the referral to the law enforcement agency, the\n\nDepartment shall not be responsible for further investigation\n\nunless:\n\na. the Department has reason to believe the alleged\n\nperpetrator is a parent of another child, not the\n\nsubject of the criminal investigation, or is otherwise\n\na person responsible for the health, safety, or\n\nwelfare of another child,\n\nb. notice is received from a law enforcement agency that\n\nit has determined the alleged perpetrator is a parent\n\nof or a person responsible for the health, safety, or\n\nwelfare of another child not the subject of the\n\ncriminal investigation, or\n\nc. the appropriate law enforcement agency requests the\n\nDepartment to assist in the investigation. If funds\nhealth, safety, or\n\nwelfare of another child,\n\nb. notice is received from a law enforcement agency that\n\nit has determined the alleged perpetrator is a parent\n\nof or a person responsible for the health, safety, or\n\nwelfare of another child not the subject of the\n\ncriminal investigation, or\n\nc. the appropriate law enforcement agency requests the\n\nDepartment to assist in the investigation. If funds\n\nand personnel are available, as determined by the\n\nDirector of the Department or a designee, the\n\nDepartment may assist law enforcement in interviewing\n\nchildren alleged to be victims of physical or sexual\n\nabuse.\n\n3. If, upon receipt of a report alleging abuse or neglect or\n\nduring the assessment or investigation, the Department determines\n\nthat the alleged abuse or neglect of the child involves:\n\na. a child in the custody of the Office of Juvenile\n\nAffairs, and\n\nb. at the time of the alleged abuse or neglect, such\n\nchild was placed in a secure facility operated by the\n\nOffice of Juvenile Affairs, as defined by Section 2-1-\n\n103 of this title,\n\nthe Department shall immediately make a referral, either verbally or\n\nin writing, to the appropriate law enforcement agency for the\n\npurpose of conducting a possible criminal investigation. After\n\nmaking the referral to the law enforcement agency, the Department\n\nshall not be responsible for further investigation.\n\nC. 1. Any law enforcement agency receiving a referral as\n\nprovided in this section shall provide the Department with a copy of\n\nthe report of any investigation resulting from a referral from the\n\nDepartment.\n\n2. Whenever, in the course of any criminal investigation, a law\n\nenforcement agency determines that there is cause to believe that a\n\nchild, other than a child in the custody of the Office of Juvenile\n\nAffairs and placed in an Office of Juvenile Affairs secure juvenile\n\nfacility, may be abused or neglected by reason of the acts,\n\nomissions, or failures on the part of a person responsible for the\n\nhealth, safety, or welfare of the child, the law enforcement agency\n\nshall immediately contact the Department for the purpose of an\n\ninvestigation.\n\nD. If, upon receipt of a report alleging abuse or neglect, the\n\nDepartment determines that the family has been the subject of a\n\ndeprived petition, the Department shall conduct a thorough\n\ninvestigation of the allegations and shall not limit the evaluation\n\nof the circumstances to an assessment. In addition, if the family\n\nhas been the subject of three or more referrals, the Department\n\nshall conduct a thorough investigation of the allegations and shall\n\nnot limit the evaluation of the circumstances to an assessment.\n\nE. For the purposes of this section, \"law enforcement\" shall\n\ninclude military law enforcement if the subject of an investigation\n\nof abuse or neglect is currently serving in any branch of the United\n\nStates military.\n\nF. The Department shall promulgate rules to implement the\n\nprovisions of this section.","path":["OK Code","Title 10A"],"source_url":"https://www.oklegislature.gov/OK_Statutes/CompleteTitles/os10A.pdf","current_through":"2026-08-14","vintage":"open-us-law v2026.08, retrieved 2026-09-14","retrieved_at":"2026-09-14T18:32:36Z","sha256":"25b240e6271f6a5c27780553fa6d2791077e9470921013e267ab0512034c8b22","source_id":"us-ok","stale":false,"prev":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-10a-10a-1-2-102v1","next":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-10a-10a-1-2-103"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}