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RCW 13.34.050

Court order to take child into custody, when—Hearing.

Known as the Juvenile Court Act

The act spans §§ 13–13 (89 sections).

Applied in 23 court decisions — leading case 110 Wash. 2d 793 - In Re the Personal Restraint of King (1988)

Most recently applied in 3 Wash. 3d 569 - In re Dependency of Baby Boy B. (August 2024)

2024 c 328 s 102; 2021 c 211 s 6; 2005 c 512 s 9; 2000 c 122 s 3; 1998 c 328 s 1; 1979 c 155 s 38; 1977 ex.s. c 291 s 33.

How often courts cite this section

19811990200020102020202440
citing decisions per year

Court decisions citing this, by year. The dip in the last several years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so recent citations are undercounted.

(1) The court may enter an order directing a law enforcement officer, probation counselor, or child protective services official to take a child into custody if: (a) A petition is filed with the juvenile court with sufficient corroborating evidence to establish that the child is dependent; (b) an affidavit or declaration is filed by the department in support of the petition setting forth specific factual information evidencing insufficient time to serve a parent with a dependency petition and hold a hearing prior to removal; and (c) the allegations contained in the petition, if true, establish that there are reasonable grounds to believe that removal is necessary to prevent imminent physical harm to the child due to child abuse or neglect, including that which results from sexual abuse, sexual exploitation, a pattern of severe neglect, or a high-potency synthetic opioid. The court shall give great weight to the lethality of high-potency synthetic opioids and public health guidance from the department of health related to high-potency synthetic opioids in determining whether removal is necessary to prevent imminent physical harm to the child due to child abuse or neglect.

(2) Any petition that does not have the necessary affidavit or declaration demonstrating a risk of imminent harm requires that the parents are provided notice and an opportunity to be heard before the order may be entered.

(3) The petition and supporting documentation must be served on the parent, and if the child is in custody at the time the child is removed, on the entity with custody other than the parent. If the court orders that a child be taken into custody under subsection (1) of this section, the petition and supporting documentation must be served on the parent at the time of the child's removal unless, after diligent efforts, the parents cannot be located at the time of removal. If the parent is not served at the time of removal, the department shall make diligent efforts to personally serve the parent. Failure to effect service does not invalidate the petition if service was attempted and the parent could not be found.

Official source: Washington State Legislature. Reproduced from public-domain Washington statutes; confirm against the official source for the current text. Not legal advice.