(A) A public
children services agency (PCSA), private child placing agency (PCPA), or
private noncustodial agency (PNA) shall request that the bureau of criminal
identification and investigation
(BCII)
(BCI)
conduct a criminal records check on prospective adoptive parents and adult
members of the prospective adoptive parent's household pursuant to the
procedures set forth in section
2151.86 of the Revised
Code.
(B) The PCSA, PCPA or PNA
shall request that BCII
BCI include information from the federal bureau of
investigation (FBI) in the criminal records check for each person subject to a
criminal records check in accordance with division (A)(4) of section
109.572 of the Revised
Code.
(C)
Except as provided in paragraph (D) of this rule,
a
A PCSA, PCPA or PNA shall not approve
an adoptive placement if the results of the
BCII
BCI criminal
records check or the FBI check indicate that a prospective adoptive parent or,
when applicable, any adult who resides with the prospective adoptive parent has
been convicted of or pleaded guilty to any
of the
following:
offense listed in appendix A to rule
5101:2-7-02 of the
Administrative Code.
(1) A violation of section 959.13,
2903.01, 2903.02, 2903.03, 2903.04, 2903.11, 2903.12, 2903.13, 2903.15,
2903.16, 2903.21, 2903.211, 2903.22, 2903.34, 2905.01, 2905.02, 2905.05,
2907.02, 2907.03, 2907.04, 2907.05, 2907.06, 2907.07, 2907.08, 2907.09,
2907.21, 2907.22, 2907.23, 2907.25, 2907.31, 2907.32, 2907.321 (2907.32.1),
2907.322 (2907.32.2), 2907.323 (2907.32.3), 2909.02, 2909.03, 2909.22, 2909.23,
2909.24, 2911.01, 2911.02, 2911.11, 2911.12, 2913.49, 2917.01, 2917.02,
2919.12, 2919.22, 2919.24, 2919.25, 2923.12, 2923.13, 2923.161 (2923.16.1),
2925.02, 2925.03, 2925.04, 2925.05, 2925.06, 2927.12 or 3716.11 of the Revised
Code, a violation of section 2905.04 of the Revised Code as it existed prior to
July 1, 1996, a violation of section 2919.23 of the Revised Code that would
have been a violation of section 2905.04 of the Revised Code as it existed
prior to July 1, 1996, had the violation been committed prior to that date, a
violation of section 2925.11 of the Revised Code that is not a minor drug
possession offense, two or more OVI or OVUAC violations committed within the
three years immediately preceding the submission of the application or petition
that is the basis of the request, or felonious sexual penetration in violation
of former section 2907.12 of the Revised Code.
(2) A violation or an existing or
former law of this state, any other state, or the United States that is
substantially equivalent to any of the offenses listed in paragraph (C)(1) of
this rule.
(D)
Rehabilitative criteria for adoptive applicants and all
other adult household members: unless specifically disqualified in appendix A
to rule
5101:2-7-02 of the
Administrative Code,
No
no person who has been convicted of or pleaded guilty
to an offense listed in
paragraph (C) of
this
appendix A to rule
5101:2-7-02 of the Administrative Code shall be
considered for adoptive placement or be an adult resident of the prospective
adoptive parent's household unless the PCSA, PCPA or PNA finds and documents
that person has met all of the following conditions:
(1) Where the offense was a
misdemeanor, or would have been a misdemeanor if conviction had occurred under
the current criminal code, at least three years have elapsed from the date the
person was fully discharged from any imprisonment or probation arising from the
conviction.
(2) Where the offense was a felony,
at least ten years have elapsed since the person was fully discharged from
imprisonment or probation. If a person has a felony conviction for spousal
abuse, rape, sexual assault, or homicide, the home shall not be
approved.
(3)
(1) The victim of the offense was not
one of the following:
a person under the age of eighteen.
(a) A person under the age of
eighteen or a person sixty years of age or older.
(b) A functionally impaired person
as defined in section 2903.10 of the Revised Code.
(c) A developmentally disabled
person as defined in section 5123.01 of the Revised Code.
(d) A person with a mental illness
as defined in section 5122.01 of the Revised Code.
(4)
(2)
The prospective adoptive parent's approval, or the person's residency in the
prospective adoptive parent's household, will not jeopardize in any way the
health, safety, or welfare of the children the PCSA, PCPA, or PNA serves. The
following factors shall be considered in determining the person's approval as
an adoptive parent or the person's residency in the adoptive parent's
household:
(a) The person's age at the time of
the offense.
(b) The nature and
seriousness of the offense.
(c) The
circumstances under which the offense was committed.
(d) The degree of participation of the person
involved in the offense.
(e) The
time elapsed since the person was fully discharged from imprisonment or
probation.
(f) The likelihood that
the circumstances leading to the offense will recur.
(g) Whether the person is a repeat offender.
"Repeat offender" means a person who has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to
the commission of any of the offenses listed in paragraph (C) of this
appendix A to rule 5101:2-7-02
of the Administrative Code two or more times in separate criminal
actions. Convictions or guilty pleas resulting from or connected with the same
act, or resulting from offenses committed at the same time, shall be counted as
one conviction or guilty plea.
(h)
The person's employment record.
(i)
The person's efforts at rehabilitation and the results of those
efforts.
(j) Whether any criminal
proceedings are pending against the person.
(k) Whether the person has been convicted of
or pleaded guilty to a felony contained in the Revised Code that is not listed
in paragraph (C) of this
appendix A to rule 5101:2-7-02
of the Administrative Code, if the felony bears a direct and substantial
relationship to being an adoptive parent or adult member of the adoptive
parent's household.
(l)
The victim of the offense was:
(i)
A functionally
impaired person as defined in section
2903.10 of the Revised
Code.
(ii)
A developmentally disabled person as defined in section
5123.01 of the Revised
Code.
(iii)
A person with a mental illness as defined in section
5122.01 of the Revised
Code.
(iv)
A person sixty years of age or older.
(l)
(m) Any other factors the PCSA, PCPA, or PNA considers
relevant.
(E)
It is the prospective adoptive parent's duty to provide written verification
that the conditions specified in paragraph (D) of this rule are met. If the
prospective adoptive parent fails to provide such proof or if the PCSA, PCPA,
or PNA determines that the proof offered by the prospective adoptive parent is
inconclusive, the prospective adoptive parent shall not be considered. Any
doubt shall be resolved in favor of protecting the children the PCSA, PCPA, or
PNA serves.
(F) All paragraphs of
this rule are applicable to records of convictions that have been sealed
pursuant to section 2953.32 of the Revised Code
because the information contained in those sealed records bears a direct and
substantial relationship to the care to be provided to any child who may be
placed in the home.
(G) A
conviction of, or a plea of guilty to, an offense listed in
paragraph (C) of this
appendix A to rule 5101:2-7-02
of the Administrative Code shall not prevent a person's approval as an
adoptive parent or being an adult household member of the home if the person
has been granted an unconditional pardon for the offense pursuant to Chapter
2967. of the Revised Code or the conviction or guilty plea has been set aside
pursuant to law. For purposes of this rule, "unconditional pardon" includes a
conditional pardon with respect to which all conditions have been performed or
have transpired.
(H) The report of
any criminal records check conducted by
BCII
BCI in accordance
with section
109.572 of the Revised Code and
pursuant to a request made by the PCSA, PCPA or PNA is not a public record for
purposes of section
149.43 of the Revised Code. The
report shall be made available only to the following persons:
(1) The person who is the subject of the
criminal records check or his representative.
(2) The PCSA, PCPA, or PNA requesting the
criminal records check or its representative.
(3) The department of job and family
services, a county department of job and family services or a public children
services agency.
(4) Any court,
hearing officer, or other necessary individual involved in a case dealing with
the denial of a final decree of adoption or interlocutory order of adoption.
(I) Prospective adoptive parents who
are applying for simultaneous approval for adoptive placement and certification
as a foster home must be at least twenty-one years of age in order to meet the
foster care requirements contained in rule 5101:2-7-02 of the Administrative
Code.
(J)
(I) Foster parents who
are being considered for adoption of a foster child residing in their home
shall be assessed according to the standards contained in rule
5101:2-48-11 or
5101:2-48-11.1 of the
Administrative Code, as applicable.
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Notes
Ohio Admin. Code
5101:2-48-10
Effective:
4/1/2021
Five Year Review (FYR) Dates:
11/30/2020 and
04/01/2026
Promulgated
Under: 119.03
Statutory
Authority: 2151.86,
5153.166
Rule
Amplifies: 2151.86,
5153.166
Prior
Effective Dates: 07/01/1990, 09/01/1994, 12/15/1995 (Emer.), 03/01/1996,
09/18/1996, 02/13/1998 (Emer.), 05/14/1998, 12/31/1998 (Emer.), 04/01/1999,
11/12/2002, 09/01/2003, 08/14/2008, 04/01/2010,
10/01/2014
