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Appendix C: Policy for Referrals to the District Attorney and Local Law Enforcement Authority (Policy #85–012)

This outlines the Commonwealth's referrals policy for sexual abuse of children to law enforcement.

Table of Contents

Overview

Mandatory referrals are made to the District Attorney for the county and the local law enforcement authority of the city or town in which the reported child resides and in which the alleged incident occurred. The Department’s obligation to notify these entities is independent from its statutory obligation to intervene where it determines that a child is at risk of abuse or neglect. As a result, the Department will often be required to contact the District Attorney(s) and local law enforcement authority(ies) at an early stage, such as at screening, before a determination has been made that Department involvement is required. Likewise, the Department is required to make notifications regardless of the amount of time that has passed since the reported incident of abuse or neglect and even where the Department is not able to identify an alleged perpetrator.

The Department must contact the appropriate District Attorney(s) and local law enforcement authority(ies) as soon as it has reason to suspect that one of the conditions listed below may have resulted from abuse or neglect:

a. A child has died.

b. A child has suffered brain damage, loss or substantial impairment of a bodily function or organ, substantial disfigurement, or other serious physical injury including, but not limited to:

  • a fracture of any bone,
  • a severe burn,
  • an impairment of any organ or
  • an injury requiring the child to be placed on life-support systems.

c. A child has been sexually assaulted. This category includes the crimes of indecent assault and battery, and rape of a minor, in any form.

d. A child has been the victim of human trafficking—even when information does not point to involvement by a caregiver. This category covers a child who has been subjected to harboring, recruitment, transportation, provision, obtaining, patronizing or soliciting for the purpose of:

  • sex trafficking (i.e., inducement to perform a commercial sex act, forced sexual services and/or sexually explicit performance including the production of pornography); and/or
  • labor trafficking (i.e., forced services, involuntary servitude, peonage, debt bondage or slavery).

e. A child has been sexually exploited—even when information does not point to involvement by a caregiver. A child is the victim of sexual exploitation if the child:

  • engages in or offers or agrees to engage in sexual conduct with another person in return for a fee or in exchange for food, shelter, education or care;
  • is encouraged or recruited by another person to engage in prostitution; and/or
  • is encouraged or recruited to consent or consents to engage in a sexually-explicit performance or to be the subject of lascivious, obscene or pornographic photography, filming or other depiction.

f. Any other disclosed physical or sexual abuse that involves physical evidence that is at risk of loss or destruction, or any disclosure by a child of an incident of sexual abuse.

Date published: May 16, 2019

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