Florida Statutes 753.05 – Referrals involving child sexual abuse
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(1) Any supervised visitation program that wishes to accept referrals involving child sexual abuse must have an agreement with the court and a current affidavit of compliance on file with the chief judge of the circuit in which the program is located affirming that the program has agreed to comply with the minimum standards contained in an administrative order issued by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court on November 17, 1999, and provided the program has a written agreement with the court and with the department that contains policies and guidelines specifically related to child sexual abuse.
(2) The agreement must include provisions for the following:
(a) Program staff who supervise visits or other contact must have specific training in child sexual abuse provided through the Clearinghouse on Supervised Visitation documented in personnel files.
Terms Used In Florida Statutes 753.05
- Affidavit: A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it, before a notary or officer having authority to administer oaths.
- Chief judge: The judge who has primary responsibility for the administration of a court but also decides cases; chief judges are determined by seniority.
- clearinghouse: means the entity within the Institute for Family Violence Studies in the School of Social Work of the Florida State University, which serves as a statewide resource on supervised visitation issues by providing technical assistance, training, and research. See Florida Statutes 753.01
- Department: means the Department of Children and Families. See Florida Statutes 753.01
- Supervised visitation program: means a program created to offer structured contact between a parent or caregiver and one or more children in the presence of a third person responsible for observing and ensuring the safety of those involved. See Florida Statutes 753.01
(b) The program must have protocols for obtaining background material on the family prior to the initiation of services.
(c) The program must accept only those child sexual abuse referrals for which staff have the requisite background material, training, and security in place to safely monitor contact.
(d) The program must decline referrals of child sexual abuse cases when staff lack necessary training or education, when background material has not been received, or when lack of security may allow revictimization of the child.
(e) The program must suspend visits in cases when the child appears to be traumatized by the visits or when the individual visiting or having other contact engages in inappropriate behavior or violates program rules.