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Pennsylvania Superior Court Holds that CYS May Not Compel Parents’ Cooperation with Child Abuse or Neglect Investigation or a Parent’s Urine Test Prior to Filing for Dependency

  • Litigation
  • Jul 26, 2019

For the first time in a published, precedential opinion, the Pennsylvania Superior Court has held that a county children and youth agency (“CYS”) may not obtain a court order compelling a parent to submit to a urine test, or compel parents to otherwise cooperate with a CYS investigation, prior to filing a dependency petition, because such relief is not permitted by statute prior to dependency.  In the Interest of D.R. et al., Nos. 311-315 WDA 2019 (Jul. 26, 2019).  The Court also held that although the court may be permitted to compel a home inspection prior to dependency because it is specifically permitted by statute, doing so without probable cause violates the federal and state constitutional right against unreasonable searches and seizures. The Court went on to explain that absent a link between the alleged abuse and the home conditions, there can be no probable cause.  

This case appears to build upon the Superior Court’s unpublished decision in In re D.P., 117 MDA 2013 (Oct. 4, 2013), which held that the Court cannot order a parent to undergo a sexual non-offender evaluation because no statute or regulation permits it as part of CYS’s investigation into a report of suspected child abuse, especially if the parent has never been convicted of a sexual offense.     

This decision by the Pennsylvania Superior Court now makes clear that CYS may not seek court intervention to aid in its investigation of child abuse or neglect unless a statute or regulation specifically permits and, even if permitted, the relief requested must comport with state and federal constitutional constraints and requirements. 

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