Terms Used In Hawaii Revised Statutes > Chapter 587A > Part IV - Court Proceedings, Evidence, and Orders

• Abandoned infant: means a child who is three years old or younger and:
  (1) The child's parents, regardless of any incidental contact or communication with the child, have demonstrated an extreme disinterest in or lack of commitment for assuming parental responsibility for the child;
  (2) The persons with whom the child resides have not known the identity or whereabouts of the child's parents for sixty days or more, and reasonable efforts have been made to identify or locate the child's parents; or
  (3) The child's mother also falls under the provisions of paragraph (1) or (2), and the child's presumed or alleged father has failed to assert a claim or interest as a parent for sixty days or more; provided that the child's father has knowledge of the child's birth and that he is the child's presumed or alleged father. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Aggravated circumstances: means that:
  (1) The parent has murdered, or has solicited, aided, abetted, attempted, or conspired to commit the murder or voluntary manslaughter of, another child of the parent;
  (2) The parent has committed a felony assault that results in serious bodily injury to the child or another child of the parent;
  (3) The parent's rights regarding a sibling of the child have been judicially terminated or divested;
  (4) The parent has tortured the child;
  (5) The child is an abandoned infant;
  (6) The parent has committed sexual abuse against another child of the parent; or
  (7) The parent is required, to register with a sex offender registry under section 113 (a) of the Adam Walsh Child-Protection and Safety Act of 2006, title 42 United States Code § 16913(a). See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Allegation: something that someone says happened.
• Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
• Authorized agency: means the department, other public agency, or a person or organization that is licensed by the department or approved by the court to receive children for control, care, maintenance, or placement. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• birth: as used in this chapter , is interchangeable with the term "natural" as that term is used in chapter 578. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Case plan: means the combined safe family home factors and the service plan or permanent plan. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Chambers: A judge's office.
• Child: means a person who is born alive and is less than eighteen years of age. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Clear and convincing evidence: means the degree of proof that will produce in the mind of the trier of fact a firm belief or conviction that the fact sought to be proved is true. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• county: includes the city and county of Honolulu. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 1-22
• Court: means one of the family courts established pursuant to chapter 571. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Criminal history record check: means an examination of an individual's criminal history through fingerprint analysis or name inquiry into state and national criminal history records and files, including the files of the Hawaii criminal justice data center. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Date of entry into foster care: means the date a child was first placed in foster custody by the court or sixty days after the child's actual removal from the home, whichever is earlier. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Default: means the status found by the court when a party who has been properly served or notified of a scheduled hearing fails to appear at court for the hearing or fails to plead or otherwise defend, thereby allowing the court to proceed without the absent party. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Department: means the department of human services and its authorized representatives. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Dismissal: The dropping of a case by the judge without further consideration or hearing. ^Source:
• Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
• Family: means each legal parent of a child; the birthing parent, unless the child has been legally adopted; the concerned non-birthing parent as provided in section 578-2(a)(5), unless the child has been legally adopted; each parent's spouse or former spouse; each sibling or person related by blood or marriage; each person residing in the dwelling unit; and any other person or legal entity with:
  (1) Legal or physical custody or guardianship of the child, or
  (2) Responsibility for the child's care. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Family home: means the home of the child's legal custodian. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Family supervision: means the legal status in which a child's legal custodian is willing and able, with the assistance of a service plan, to provide the child with a safe family home. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Foster care: means continuous twenty-four-hour care and supportive services provided for a child by an authorized agency or the court, including, the care, supervision, guidance, and rearing of a child by a resource family. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Foster custodian: means the authorized agency that has foster custody of the child. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Foster custody: means the legal status created when the department places a child outside of the family home with the agreement of the legal custodian or pursuant to court order, after the court has determined that the child's family is not presently willing and able to provide the child with a safe family home, even with the assistance of a service plan. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
• Guardian ad litem: means any person who is appointed by the court under this chapter to protect and promote the needs and interests of a child or a party, including a court-appointed special advocate. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Harm: means damage or injury to a child's physical or psychological health or welfare, where:
  (1) The child exhibits evidence of injury, including, but not limited to:

  (A) Substantial or multiple skin bruising;

  (B) Substantial external or internal bleeding;

  (C) Burn or burns;

  (D) Malnutrition;

  (E) Failure to thrive;

  (F) Soft tissue swelling;

  (G) Extreme pain;

  (H) Extreme mental distress;

  (I) Gross degradation;

  (J) Poisoning;

  (K) Fracture of any bone;

  (L) Subdural hematoma; or

  (M) Death;

  and the injury is not justifiably explained, or the history given concerning the condition or death is not consistent with the degree or type of the condition or death, or there is evidence that the condition or death may not be the result of an accident;

  (2) The child has been the victim of sexual contact or conduct, including sexual assault; sodomy; molestation; sexual fondling; incest; prostitution; obscene or pornographic photographing, filming, or depiction; or other similar forms of sexual exploitation, including but not limited to acts that constitute an offense pursuant to section 7121202(1)(b);
  (3) The child's psychological well-being has been injured as evidenced by a substantial impairment in the child's ability to function;
  (4) The child is not provided in a timely manner with adequate food; clothing; shelter; supervision; or psychological, physical, or medical care;
  (5) The child is provided with dangerous, harmful, or detrimental drugs as defined in section 712-1240, except when a child's family administers drugs to the child as directed or prescribed by a practitioner as defined in section 712-1240; or
  (6) The child has been the victim of labor trafficking under chapter 707. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Hearsay: Statements by a witness who did not see or hear the incident in question but heard about it from someone else. Hearsay is usually not admissible as evidence in court.
• Imminent harm: means that without intervention within the next ninety days, there is reasonable cause to believe that harm to the child will occur or reoccur. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Incapacitated person: means a person who, even with appropriate and reasonably available assistance, is unable to substantially:
  (1) Comprehend the legal significance of the issues or nature of the proceedings under this chapter;
  (2) Consult with counsel; and
  (3) Assist in preparing the person's case or strategy. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
• Ohana conference: means a family-focused, strength-based meeting conducted by trained community facilitators that is designed to build and enhance the network of protection for a child who is subject to a proceeding under this chapter. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Parent: means any legal parent of a child; the birth mother, unless the child has been legally adopted; the adjudicated, presumed, or concerned birth father of the child as provided in section 578-2(a)(5), unless the child has been legally adopted; or the legal guardians or any other legal custodians of the child. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Party: means an authorized agency; a child who is subject to a proceeding under this chapter; the child's parents and guardian ad litem; any other person who is alleged in the petition or who is subsequently found at any child protective proceeding to be encouraging, causing, or contributing to the acts or conditions that brought the child within the scope of this chapter; and may include any other person, including the child's current foster parent or current resource family, if the court finds that such person's participation is in the best interest of the child; provided that the court may limit a party's right to participate in any child protective proceeding if the court deems such limitation of such party's participation to be consistent with the best interests of the child and such party is not a family member who is required to be summoned pursuant to § 587A-13, except as otherwise provided in this chapter. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Permanent custody: means the legal status created by order of the court after the termination of parental rights as set forth in this chapter. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Permanent plan: means a specific, comprehensive written plan prepared pursuant to § 587A-32. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Pleadings: Written statements of the parties in a civil case of their positions. In the federal courts, the principal pleadings are the complaint and the answer.
• Police officer: means a person employed by any county in the State of Hawaii to enforce the laws and ordinances for preserving the peace and maintaining safety and order in the community, or an employee authorized by the director of law enforcement under § 329-51 or 353C-4 to exercise the powers set forth in this chapter. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Preliminary hearing: A hearing where the judge decides whether there is enough evidence to make the defendant have a trial.
• Protective custody: means the legal status of a child whose physical custody is assumed by a police officer under this chapter. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Reasonable cause to believe: means the degree of proof that would cause a person of average caution to believe the evidence is reasonably trustworthy. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Resource family: means a person or family licensed by the department or another authorized agency to provide foster care services for children and can be used interchangeably with "foster parent" and "foster family". See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Safe family home factors: means a list of criteria that must be considered in determining whether a parent is able to provide a safe family home as set out herein in § 587A-7. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Service plan: means a specific, comprehensive written plan prepared by an authorized agency pursuant to § 587A-27. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.
• Summons: Another word for subpoena used by the criminal justice system.
• Temporary foster custody: means a legal status created under this chapter with or without a court order, whereby the department temporarily assumes the duties and rights of a foster custodian of a child. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Termination of parental rights: means the severance of parental rights. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Testify: Answer questions in court.
• Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
• Threatened harm: means any reasonably foreseeable substantial risk of harm to a child. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 587A-4
• Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.