Colorado § 25-20.5-405 - Local review teams - duties - authority.

§ 25-20.5-405. Local review teams - duties - authority.

(1) The local or regional review team shall conduct individual, case-specific reviews of fatalities of children from birth through seventeen years of age occurring in the jurisdiction of the local or regional review team for the purpose of identifying prevention recommendations related, at a minimum, to the following causes of child fatality:

(a) Undetermined causes;

(b) Unintentional injury;

(c) Violence;

(d) Motor vehicle incidents;

(e) Child abuse or neglect as defined in section 19-1-103 (1), C.R.S., including the death of a child who was previously unknown to the county department but whose death included circumstances related to child abuse or neglect, regardless of the official manner of death;

(f) Sudden unexpected infant death; or

(g) Suicide.

(2) With respect to each child fatality reviewed, the local or regional review team shall:

(a) Review the cause and manner of the child fatality as determined by the local coroner, pathologist, or medical examiner, and determine whether the local or regional review team concurs with the coroner's, pathologist's, or medical examiner's findings. Any information requested from the local coroner must be in compliance with section 30-10-606, C.R.S.

(b) In cases in which the local or regional review team does not concur with the cause or manner of death as determined by the local coroner, pathologist, or medical examiner, forward a report of the local or regional review team's analysis of the cause and manner of the child fatality to the local coroner, pathologist, or medical examiner for his or her consideration;

(c) Evaluate means by which the fatality might have been prevented;

(d) Report case review findings, as appropriate, to public and private agencies that have responsibilities for children, including the office of the child protection ombudsman as described in sections 19-3.3-103 and 19-3.3-103.4, and make prevention recommendations to these agencies that may help to reduce the number of child fatalities;

(e) (Deleted by amendment, L. 2013.)

(e.5) No later than two months after reviewing a case, enter information regarding the child fatality into a web-based data-collection system, utilized by the department;

(f) Submit to the state review team the following information:

(I) (Deleted by amendment, L. 2013.)

(II) A listing of any system issues identified through the review process and recommendations to the state review team and the appropriate agencies for system improvements and needed resources, training, and information dissemination where gaps and deficiencies may exist;

(III) Any changes, positive or negative, that appear to have resulted from implementation of previous recommendations made by the local or regional review team to the state review team and appropriate agencies; and

(IV) Examples of services known by the local or regional review team to be provided by public or private agencies to children and their families that are designed to prevent child fatalities and that are effective in preventing such fatalities.

(V) (Deleted by amendment, L. 2013.)

(g) Secure the most reliable information possible that is related to a child fatality to provide a thorough, comprehensive review of each child fatality; and

(h) Request capacity assistance as necessary from the department for the purpose of conducting a child fatality review.

(3) Each local or regional review team may, within existing appropriations and community resources, promote continuing education for professionals involved in investigating, treating, and preventing child abuse and neglect as a means of preventing child fatalities due to abuse or neglect and other child fatalities. The local or regional review team may also, within existing resources, promote public education related to preventing child fatalities related to abuse and neglect.

Source: L. 2005: Entire part added, p. 976, § 1, effective June 2. L. 2013: Entire section amended, (SB 13-255), ch. 222, p. 1031, § 5, effective May 14. L. 2021: (2)(d) amended, (HB 21-1272), ch. 324, p. 1986, § 2, effective June 24. L. 2025: (2)(d) amended, (HB 25-1200), ch. 270, p. 1397, § 8, effective August 6.