E.  Special Circumstances

C.R.S. § 19-1-123
1.  Young Children

If the petition names a child under the age of six, the case is treated as an expedited permanency planning (EPP) case. 


C.R.S. § 19-3-505(3)
 C.R.S. § 19-3-702
 C.R.S. § 19-3-703
EPP cases require that an adjudicatory hearing be held within sixty days of service of the petition, that the dispositional hearing occur within thirty days of the adjudicatory hearing, that the permanency planning hearing be held within ninety days of the dispositional hearing, and that permanent placement occur within twelve months of the child’s placement out of the home.

C.R.S. § 19-3-312(4)
2.  Emotional Abuse

If the petition alleges only emotional abuse, the court must order an independent mental examination of the child if any party requests it. The court may also order such an examination on its own motion. The evaluation costs are split between the requesting party and the county, unless it would be a hardship to the requesting party.

C.R.S. § 19-3-312(5)






C.R.S. § 19-3-102(2)
If the petition alleges the child is an abused child’s sibling, DHS must engage in concurrent planning. The goal is to expedite permanency planning for the child. Under this D&N definition, the parents, guardian, or legal custodian have subjected another child to either:
  • An identifiable pattern of habitual abuse; and
  • They have also been adjudicated D&N respondents based on physical or sexual abuse; or
  • A court has found they caused another child’s death; and
  • The abuse poses a current threat to the child.
25 U.S.C.A. § 1912(a)
3.  Indian Child

If the petition involves an American Indian child, notice of any pending proceedings and a right to intervene must be sent to the tribe, to the parent, and to the child’s custodian, by registered mail with return receipt requested. It must include the petition and a notice of the tribe’s right to intervene. If the court does not know the identity or location of a parent or Indian custodian and the tribe, it must notify the Secretary of the Interior. The Secretary has fifteen days after receipt to provide notice to the parent or Indian custodian and the tribe.