South Carolina § 44-24-40 - Discharge of voluntarily admitted child; grounds for not effecting discharge.

§ 44-24-40. Discharge of voluntarily admitted child; grounds for not effecting discharge.

The director of a treatment program or facility immediately shall discharge to the parent, legal guardian, or agency a voluntarily admitted child who:

(1) is no longer in need of that treatment program or facility; or

(2) requests his own discharge or whose discharge is requested, in writing, by his parent or legal guardian, or other interested person, unless at least one of the following exists:

(a) the child was admitted on his application if sixteen years of age or older, and the request for discharge is made by a person other than the child, in which case, discharge is conditioned upon agreement of the child;

(b) the child, by reason of age, was admitted on the application of another person, in which case, discharge, before becoming sixteen years of age, is conditioned upon three days' notice, exclusive of Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays, being given to and consent being obtained from his parent or legal guardian;

(c) the director of the treatment program or facility, within three days, exclusive of Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays, after the child or other interested person requests the child's discharge, files with the court of the county in which the child resided or was present immediately before his admission, a petition for judicial commitment pursuant to Section 44-24-90.

HISTORY: 1991 Act No. 88, SECTION 1; 1993 Act No. 30, SECTION 1.