(1) Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, the Department of Human Services shall simultaneously file a petition to terminate the parental rights of a child or ward’s parents and identify, recruit, process and approve a qualified family for adoption if the child or ward is in the custody of the department and:
(a) The child or ward has been in substitute care under the responsibility of the department for 15 months of the most recent 22 months;
(b) A parent has been convicted of murder of another child of the parent, voluntary manslaughter of another child of the parent, aiding, abetting, attempting, conspiring or soliciting to commit murder or voluntary manslaughter of the child or ward or of another child of the parent or felony assault that has resulted in serious physical injury to the child or ward or to another child of the parent; or
(c) A court of competent jurisdiction has determined that the child or ward is an abandoned child.
(2) The department shall file a petition to terminate the parental rights of a parent in the circumstances described in subsection (1) of this section unless:
(a) The child or ward is being cared for by a relative and that placement is intended to be permanent;
(b) There is a compelling reason, which is documented in the case plan, for determining that filing such a petition would not be in the best interests of the child or ward. Such compelling reasons include, but are not limited to:
(A) The parent is successfully participating in services that will make it possible for the child or ward to safely return home within a reasonable time as provided in ORS 419B.476 (5)(c);
(B) Another permanent plan is better suited to meet the health and safety needs of the child or ward, including the need to preserve the child’s or ward’s sibling attachments and relationships; or
(C) The court or local citizen review board in a prior hearing or review determined that while the case plan was to reunify the family the department did not make reasonable efforts or, if the Indian Child Welfare Act applies, active efforts to make it possible for the child or ward to safely return home; or
(c) The department has not provided to the family of the child or ward, consistent with the time period in the case plan, such services as the department deems necessary for the child or ward to safely return home, if reasonable efforts to make it possible for the child or ward to safely return home are required to be made with respect to the child or ward.
(3) No petition to terminate the parental rights of a child or ward’s parents pursuant to subsection (1) of this section or pursuant to ORS 419B.500, 419B.502, 419B.504, 419B.506 or 419B.508 may be filed until the court has determined that the permanency plan for the child or ward should be adoption after a permanency hearing pursuant to ORS 419B.476. [1999 c.859 §21; 2001 c.686 §17; 2003 c.396 §82; 2003 c.544 §2; 2007 c.234 §1; 2007 c.806 §12]
Section: Previous 419B.446 419B.449 419B.452 419B.460 419B.470 419B.473 419B.476 419B.498 419B.500 419B.502 419B.504 419B.506 419B.508 419B.515 419B.517 NextLast modified: August 7, 2008