No. SB 1730
Filed under Criminal Justice.
Child Welfare; Deleting a provision exempting a judge subject to discipline under the State Constitution from criminal prosecution under certain circumstances; authorizing interested parties to file motions requesting emergency hearings to resolve certain custody or visitation disputes; requiring a court to give all parties to an emergency hearing certain notice; revising the definition of the term “domestic violence”; prohibiting the infringement of the right of each parent or legal guardian to lawful custody or visitation without due process and a certain court order, etc.
Plain English Summary
AI-GENERATEDThe bill creates a new third-degree felony for taking or withholding a child from a parent, treating custody interference as a criminal act rather than a private civil matter.
It expands the definition of child abuse to include any act creating a substantial risk of significant impairment, even if no actual injury occurs, and explicitly includes custody interference.
Law enforcement officers are now required to investigate all reported custody violations, locate the child, and assist the parent, with specific prohibitions on considering the child's preferences or declining to act due to pending civil cases.
A new emergency hearing process allows courts to issue temporary custody orders within three business days, with a full hearing required within 30 days to resolve the dispute on its merits.
AIMakes taking, hiding, or withholding a child from a parent a third-degree felony, with mandatory police investigation and entry into missing-child databases.
AIRequires courts to hold expedited hearings within three days of a motion alleging custody interference, with a full merits hearing within 30 days.
AIBroadens abuse to include any act creating a substantial risk of significant impairment, regardless of whether actual injury occurs or the child understands it.
AIClassifies taking or retaining a minor or vulnerable adult in violation of custody rights as domestic violence, triggering DV protections and reporting duties.
AIDeletes the provision shielding judges from criminal prosecution for failing to report suspected child abuse received in official duties.
AIRequires courts to award makeup time and consider fines or supervised visitation if a parent unreasonably refuses to honor a time-sharing agreement.