F.  Findings

C.R.S. § 19-3-102
A “neglected or dependent” child is defined as one who is:
  • Abandoned;
  • Mistreated or abused;
  • Lacking parental care;
  • Subject to an injurious home environment;
  • Neglected;
  • Homeless;
  • Beyond parental control;
  • Habitually abused.
C.R.S. § 19-3-102(1)(a)

People in Interest of M.C.C., 641 P.2d 306 (Colo. App. 1982)
Each definition is discussed in detail below.

1.  Abandoned Child

To abandon a child, the parents must have surrendered custody for at least six months, and must have manifested no intention to resume custody or failed to make permanent legal arrangements for the child’s care. A child is also abandoned if the parents are unknown for at least three months after reasonable efforts to find them. The court may make a finding based on abandonment even if a police hold or court order caused the initial separation.

C.R.S. § 19-3-102(1)(a)
2.  Mistreated or Abused Child

To mistreat a child, parents, guardians or legal custodians must subject the child to mistreatment or abuse. 


People v. D.A.K., 198 Colo. 11, 596 P.2d 747 (Colo. 1979)
Alternatively, they allow another to mistreat or abuse the child without taking lawful means to stop or prevent it. The abuse may be physical, sexual or emotional.

C.R.S. § 19-1-103(1)(b)
 People in the Interest of M.A.L., 37 Colo. App. 307, 592 P.2d 415 (Colo. App. 1976)
Abuse does not include the reasonable exercise of parental discipline. The question of reasonableness is one that must be decided by the trier of fact. Abuse also does not include reasonable acts necessary to subdue a child being taken into custody by a police officer.

John E.B. Myers, Evidence in Child Abuse and Neglect Cases (3d ed. 1997)
Evidence offered in sexual abuse cases may include medical evidence; the child may testify or others may testify to the child’s statements or “acting out” behavior; or the petitioner may offer expert testimony on the child’s psychological symptoms, perpetrator profiles and “sexual abuse accommodation syndrome.” The alleged perpetrator’s admissions against interest and prior acts also may be offered as proof.

People in the Interest of C.C.G., 873 P.2d 41 (Colo. App. 1994)
However, in C.C.G., the Colorado Court of Appeals determined that medical proof the child had an enlarged vaginal opening alone was insufficient to support a D&N adjudication. The court concluded that possible causes of the enlargement and the inferences to be drawn from it were necessary.

C.R.S. § 19-3-102(1)(b)
M.S. v. People, 812 P.2d 632 (Colo. 1991)
3.  Child Lacking Parental Care

The child lacks proper parental care because of the acts or omissions of a parent, guardian or legal custodian. The court may find a child neglected or dependent even if such lack of care is through no fault of the parent. For example, a child may lack proper parental care because of parent’s mental illness or developmental disability.

People in the Interest of S.B., 742 P.2d 935 (Colo. App. 1987)
In S.B, the Colorado Court of Appeals determined a child to be “neglected or dependent” based on the father being bound over for first-degree murder of the mother. If the father were convicted, his daughter would lack proper parental care. If the father were exonerated, she would not be domiciled with him through no fault of the parent. The court noted, however, that incarceration could not be the sole basis for a D&N finding.

C.R.S. § 19-3-102(1)(c)
4.  Injurious Home Environment

The environment is injurious to the child’s welfare. 


People in the Interest of J.E.B., 854 P.2d 1372 (Colo. App. 1993)
In J.E.B., the Colorado Court of Appeals affirmed a D&N adjudication based on the mother’s chaotic home life, domestic violence, lack of a stable residence and exposure of children to drugs and sexual activities.

C.R.S. § 19-3-102(1)(d)
5.  Neglected Child

a.  Neglect

A child is neglected when a parent, guardian or legal custodian fails or refuses to provide the child with proper or necessary:

  • Subsistence;
  • Education;
  • Medical care; or
  • Any other care necessary for the child’s health, guidance, or well-being.
C.R.S. § 19-3-103(1)
b.  Spiritual Treatment

Spiritual treatment  may not be the sole basis for adjudicating a child D&N. Spiritual treatment applies when a parent, guardian or legal custodian treats the child’s medical condition only by a recognized method of spiritual healing.

C.R.S. § 19-3-103(2)
A recognized method of spiritual healing is presumed in any of the following circumstances:
  • Fees and expenses are deductible under IRS rules;
  • Fees and expenses are reimbursable under Colorado health insurance policies;
  • It provides an equivalent success rate compared to medical care.
People in the Interest of D.L.E., 200 Colo. 244, 614 P.2d 873 (Colo. 1980)
What if the child’s life is in imminent danger from denial of medical care on religious grounds? In D.L.E., the Colorado Court of Appeals held that the mother’s failure to provide medical treatment for her son’s grand mal seizures was insufficient to support a D&N adjudication, given her legitimate use of spiritual healing. 

People in the Interest of D.L.E., 645 P.2d 271 (Colo. 1982)
However, mother’s failure did support an adjudication after her son’s health deteriorated to the point his life was endangered.

C.R.S. § 19-3-103(1)
If the child’s medical condition places the child in a life-threatening situation, the court may order medical treatment for the child. The court may order a medical evaluation before making this determination.

C.R.S. § 19-3-103(1)
If the parent, guardian or custodian inhibits or interferes with the provision of court-ordered medical treatment, the child is considered neglected.

C.R.S. § 19-3-102(1)(e)
6.  Homeless Child

Through no fault of the parents, guardian or legal custodian, the child is homeless, without proper care, or not domiciled with them. 


People in the Interest of T.R.W., 759 P.2d 768 (Colo. App. 1988)
In T.R.W., the Colorado Court of Appeals held that a noncustodial mother’s admission that the child is not domiciled with her through no fault of her own is not sufficient to support a D&N adjudication against a custodial father.

C.R.S. § 19-3-102(1)(f)
7.  Beyond Parental Control

The child has run away from home or is otherwise beyond the control of the parent, guardian or legal custodian. 


People in the Interest of C.C.G., 873 P.2d 41 (Colo. App. 1994)
In C.C.G., the Colorado Court of Appeals held that a girl’s refusal to return to her mother after her father brought her to DHS to disclose sexual abuse did not establish she was beyond the control of the parent.

C.R.S. § 19-3-102(2)
8.  Abused Child’s Sibling

Parents, guardians or legal custodians have subjected another child to an identifiable pattern of habitual abuse.  Under this definition, the parents, guardians or legal custodians 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
  • These findings must include the finding that the abuse poses a current threat to the child.

C.R.S. § 19-3-312(5)
Where this is the case, the county department must engage in concurrent planning to expedite the permanency planning process.

People in the Interest of D.L.R., 638 P.2d 39 (Colo. 1981)
9.  Prospective Neglect

In D.L.R., the Colorado Supreme Court held that a child may be adjudicated dependent or neglected even if the parents have never had custody of the child. The mother suffered from schizophrenia, and experts testified she could not adequately parent the child. The court decided that proof of a present inability to parent met the statutory requirement. The court also held a homeless infant placed in temporary care at birth met the statutory requirement of showing harm to the child.

25 U.S.C.A. § 1912
10.  Indian Child

If the child is an Indian child, special findings are also required. If DHS has or seeks custody of an Indian child, it must prove by clear and convincing evidence with expert testimony that the child will suffer emotional or physical harm if returned home. It must also prove it made active efforts to prevent the child’s placement.