Illinois General Assembly - Illinois Compiled Statutes

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325 ILCS 5/4.2

(325 ILCS 5/4.2)

Sec. 4.2. Departmental report on death or serious life-threatening injury of child.

(a) In the case of the death or serious life-threatening injury of a child whose care and custody or custody
and guardianship has been transferred to the Department, or in the case
of a child abuse or neglect report made to the central register involving the
death of a child, the
Department shall (i) investigate or provide for an investigation of the cause
of and circumstances surrounding the death or serious life-threatening injury, (ii) review the investigation,
and (iii) prepare and issue a report on the death or serious life-threatening injury.

(b) The report shall include (i) the cause of death or serious life-threatening injury, whether from natural
or other causes, (ii) any
extraordinary or pertinent information concerning the circumstances of the
child's death or serious life-threatening injury, (iii) identification of child protective or other social services provided or actions taken regarding the child or the child's family at the time of the death or serious life-threatening injury or within the preceding 5 years, (iv) any action or further investigation undertaken by the
Department since the death or serious life-threatening injury of the
child, (v) as appropriate, recommendations for State
administrative or policy changes, (vi) whether the alleged perpetrator of the abuse or neglect has been charged with committing a crime related to the report and allegation of abuse or neglect, and (vii)  a copy of any documents, files, records, books, and papers created or used in connection with the Department's investigation of the death or serious life-threatening injury of the child. In any case involving the death or near death of a child, when a person responsible for the child has been charged with committing a crime that results in the child's death or near death, there shall be a presumption that the best interest of the public will be served by public disclosure of certain information concerning the circumstances of the investigations of the death or near death of the child and any other investigations concerning that child or other children living in the same household.

If the Department receives from the public a request for information relating to a case of child abuse or neglect involving the death or serious life-threatening injury of a child, the Director shall consult with the State's Attorney in the county of venue and release the report related to the case, except for the following, which may be redacted from the information disclosed to the public: any mental health or psychological information that is confidential as otherwise provided in State law; privileged communications of an attorney; the identity of the individual or individuals, if known, who made the report; information that may cause mental or physical harm to a sibling or another child living in the household; information that may undermine an ongoing criminal investigation; and any information prohibited from disclosure by federal law or regulation. Any information provided by an adult subject of a report that is released about the case in a public forum shall be subject to disclosure upon a public information request. Information about the case shall also be subject to disclosure upon consent of an adult subject. Information about the case shall also be subject to disclosure if it has been publicly disclosed in a report by a law enforcement agency or official, a State's Attorney, a judge, or any other State or local investigative agency or official.  Except as it may apply directly to the cause of the death or serious life-threatening injury of the
child, nothing
in this Section shall be deemed to authorize the release or disclosure to the
public of
the substance or content of any psychological, psychiatric, therapeutic,
clinical, or medical reports, evaluation, or like materials or information
pertaining to the child or the child's family.

(c) No later than 6 months after the date of the death or serious life-threatening injury of the child, the
Department shall notify the President of the Senate, the Minority Leader of
the Senate, the
Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Minority Leader of the House of
Representatives, and the members of the Senate and the House of Representatives
in whose district the child's death or serious life-threatening injury occurred upon the completion of each report
and
shall submit an annual cumulative report to the Governor and the General
Assembly incorporating cumulative data about the above reports and including appropriate
findings
and recommendations.  The reports required by this subsection (c) shall be made available to the public
after completion or submittal.

(d) To enable the Department to prepare the report, the Department may
request and shall timely receive from departments, boards, bureaus, or other
agencies of the State, or any of its political subdivisions, or any duly
authorized agency, or any other agency which provided assistance, care, or
services to the deceased or injured child any information they are authorized to
provide.

(Source: P.A. 103-22, eff. 8-8-23.)