96TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2009 and 2010
HB5928

 

Introduced 2/10/2010, by Rep. Emily McAsey

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
New Act

    Creates the Uniform Child Abduction Prevention Act. Provides that a court on its own motion may order abduction prevention measures in a child custody proceeding if the court finds that the evidence establishes a credible risk of abduction of the child. Provides that a party to a child custody determination or another individual or entity having a right under the law of this State or any other state to seek a child custody determination for the child may file a petition seeking abduction prevention measures to protect the child. Provides that a State's Attorney may seek a warrant to take physical custody of a child or other appropriate prevention measures. Contains provisions concerning definitions, cooperation and communication among courts, jurisdiction, contents of petitions, factors to determine risk of abduction, measures to prevent abduction, warrants to take physical custody of a child, duration of abduction prevention order, uniformity of application and construction, and other matters.


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A BILL FOR

 

HB5928 LRB096 18061 AJO 33435 b

1     AN ACT concerning child abduction.
 
2     Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3 represented in the General Assembly:
 
4     Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
5 Uniform Child Abduction Prevention Act.
 
6     Section 2. Definitions. In this Act:
7     (1) "Abduction" means the wrongful removal or wrongful
8 retention of a child.
9     (2) "Child" means an unemancipated individual who is less
10 than 18 years of age.
11     (3) "Child-custody determination" means a judgment,
12 decree, or other order of a court providing for the legal
13 custody, physical custody, or visitation with respect to a
14 child. The term includes a permanent, temporary, initial, and
15 modification order.
16     (4) "Child-custody proceeding" means a proceeding in which
17 legal custody, physical custody, or visitation with respect to
18 a child is at issue. The term includes a proceeding for
19 divorce, dissolution of marriage, separation, neglect, abuse,
20 dependency, guardianship, paternity, termination of parental
21 rights, or protection from domestic violence.
22     (5) "Court" means an entity authorized under the law of a
23 state to establish, enforce, or modify a child-custody

 

 

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1 determination.
2     (6) "Petition" includes a motion or its equivalent.
3     (7) "Record" means information that is inscribed on a
4 tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other
5 medium and is retrievable in perceivable form.
6     (8) "State" means a state of the United States, the
7 District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin
8 Islands, or any territory or insular possession subject to the
9 jurisdiction of the United States. The term includes a
10 federally recognized Indian tribe or nation.
11     (9) "Travel document" means records relating to a travel
12 itinerary, including travel tickets, passes, reservations for
13 transportation, or accommodations. The term does not include a
14 passport or visa.
15     (10) "Wrongful removal" means the taking of a child that
16 breaches rights of custody or visitation given or recognized
17 under the law of this State.
18     (11) "Wrongful retention" means the keeping or concealing
19 of a child that breaches rights of custody or visitation given
20 or recognized under the law of this State.
 
21     Section 3. Cooperation and communication among courts.
22 Sections 110, 111, and 112 of the Uniform Child-Custody
23 Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act apply to cooperation and
24 communications among courts in proceedings under this Act.
 

 

 

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1     Section 4. Actions for abduction prevention measures.
2     (a) A court on its own motion may order abduction
3 prevention measures in a child-custody proceeding if the court
4 finds that the evidence establishes a credible risk of
5 abduction of the child.
6     (b) A party to a child-custody determination or another
7 individual or entity having a right under the law of this State
8 or any other state to seek a child-custody determination for
9 the child may file a petition seeking abduction prevention
10 measures to protect the child under this Act.
11     (c) A State's Attorney or other appropriate public official
12 designated under Section 315 of the Uniform Child-Custody
13 Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act may seek a warrant to take
14 physical custody of a child under Section 9 of this Act or
15 other appropriate prevention measures.
 
16     Section 5. Jurisdiction.
17     (a) A petition under this Act may be filed only in a court
18 that has jurisdiction to make a child-custody determination
19 with respect to the child at issue under the Uniform
20 Child-Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act.
21     (b) A court of this State has temporary emergency
22 jurisdiction under Section 204 of the Uniform Child-Custody
23 Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act if the court finds a credible
24 risk of abduction.
 

 

 

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1     Section 6. Contents of petition. A petition under this Act
2 must be verified and include a copy of any existing
3 child-custody determination, if available. The petition must
4 specify the risk factors for abduction, including the relevant
5 factors described in Section 7. Subject to any other law
6 providing for the confidentiality of procedures, addresses,
7 and other identifying information, if reasonably
8 ascertainable, the petition must contain:
9         (1) the name, date of birth, and gender of the child;
10         (2) the customary address and current physical
11     location of the child;
12         (3) the identity, customary address, and current
13     physical location of the respondent;
14         (4) a statement of whether a prior action to prevent
15     abduction or domestic violence has been filed by a party or
16     other individual or entity having custody of the child, and
17     the date, location, and disposition of the action;
18         (5) a statement of whether a party to the proceeding
19     has been arrested for a crime related to domestic violence,
20     stalking, or child abuse or neglect, and the date,
21     location, and disposition of the case; and
22         (6) any other information required to be submitted to
23     the court for a child-custody determination under Section
24     209 of the Uniform Child-Custody Jurisdiction and
25     Enforcement Act.
 

 

 

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1     Section 7. Factors to determine risk of abduction.
2     (a) In determining whether there is a credible risk of
3 abduction of a child, the court shall consider any evidence
4 that the petitioner or respondent:
5         (1) has previously abducted or attempted to abduct the
6     child;
7         (2) has threatened to abduct the child;
8         (3) has recently engaged in activities that may
9     indicate a planned abduction, including:
10             (A) abandoning employment;
11             (B) selling a primary residence;
12             (C) terminating a lease;
13             (D) closing bank or other financial management
14         accounts, liquidating assets, hiding or destroying
15         financial documents, or conducting any unusual
16         financial activities;
17             (E) applying for a passport or visa or obtaining
18         travel documents for the respondent, a family member,
19         or the child; or
20             (F) seeking to obtain the child's birth
21         certificate or school or medical records;
22         (4) has engaged in domestic violence, stalking, or
23     child abuse or neglect;
24         (5) has refused to follow a child-custody
25     determination;
26         (6) lacks strong familial, financial, emotional, or

 

 

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1     cultural ties to the state or the United States;
2         (7) has strong familial, financial, emotional, or
3     cultural ties to another state or country;
4         (8) is likely to take the child to a country that:
5             (A) is not a party to the Hague Convention on the
6         civil aspects of international child abduction and
7         does not provide for the extradition of an abducting
8         parent or for the return of an abducted child;
9             (B) is a party to the Hague Convention on the civil
10         aspects of international child abduction but:
11                 (i) the Hague Convention on the civil aspects
12             of international child abduction is not in force
13             between the United States and that country;
14                 (ii) is noncompliant according to the most
15             recent compliance report issued by the United
16             States department of state; or
17                 (iii) lacks legal mechanisms for immediately
18             and effectively enforcing a return order under the
19             Hague Convention on the civil aspects of
20             international child abduction;
21             (C) poses a risk that the child's physical or
22         emotional health or safety would be endangered in the
23         country because of specific circumstances relating to
24         the child or because of human rights violations
25         committed against children;
26             (D) has laws or practices that would:

 

 

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1                 (i) enable the respondent, without due cause,
2             to prevent the petitioner from contacting the
3             child;
4                 (ii) restrict the petitioner from freely
5             traveling to or exiting from the country because of
6             the petitioner's gender, nationality, marital
7             status, or religion; or
8                 (iii) restrict the child's ability legally to
9             leave the country after the child reaches the age
10             of majority because of a child's gender,
11             nationality, or religion;
12             (E) is included by the United States Department of
13         State on a current list of state sponsors of terrorism;
14             (F) does not have an official United States
15         diplomatic presence in the country; or
16             (G) is engaged in active military action or war,
17         including a civil war, to which the child may be
18         exposed;
19         (9) is undergoing a change in immigration or
20     citizenship status that would adversely affect the
21     respondent's ability to remain in the United States
22     legally;
23         (10) has had an application for United States
24     citizenship denied;
25         (11) has forged or presented misleading or false
26     evidence on government forms or supporting documents to

 

 

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1     obtain or attempt to obtain a passport, a visa, travel
2     documents, a Social Security Card, a driver's license, or
3     other government-issued identification card or has made a
4     misrepresentation to the United States government;
5         (12) has used multiple names to attempt to mislead or
6     defraud; or
7         (13) has engaged in any other conduct the court
8     considers relevant to the risk of abduction.
9     (b) In the hearing on a petition under this Act, the court
10 shall consider any evidence that the respondent believed in
11 good faith that the respondent's conduct was necessary to avoid
12 imminent harm to the child or respondent and any other evidence
13 that may be relevant to whether the respondent may be permitted
14 to remove or retain the child.
 
15     Section 8. Provisions and measures to prevent abduction.
16     (a) If a petition is filed under this Act, the court may
17 enter an order that must include:
18         (1) the basis for the court's exercise of jurisdiction;
19         (2) the manner in which notice and opportunity to be
20     heard were given to the people entitled to notice of the
21     proceeding;
22         (3) a detailed description of each party's custody and
23     visitation rights and residential arrangements for the
24     child;
25         (4) a provision stating that a violation of the order

 

 

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1     may subject the party in violation to civil and criminal
2     penalties; and
3         (5) identification of the child's country of habitual
4     residence at the time of the issuance of the order.
5     (b) If, at a hearing on a petition under this Act or on the
6 court's own motion, the court after reviewing the evidence
7 finds a credible risk of abduction of the child, the court
8 shall enter an abduction prevention order. The order must
9 include the provisions required by subsection (a) and measures
10 and conditions, including those in subsections (c), (d), and
11 (e), that are reasonably calculated to prevent abduction of the
12 child, giving due consideration to the custody and visitation
13 rights of the parties. The court shall consider the age of the
14 child, the potential harm to the child from an abduction, the
15 legal and practical difficulties of returning the child to the
16 jurisdiction if abducted, and the reasons for the potential
17 abduction, including evidence of domestic violence, stalking,
18 or child abuse or neglect.
19     (c) An abduction prevention order may include one or more
20 of the following:
21         (1) an imposition of travel restrictions that require
22     that a party traveling with the child outside a designated
23     geographical area provide the other party with the
24     following:
25             (A) the travel itinerary of the child;
26             (B) a list of physical addresses and telephone

 

 

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1         numbers at which the child can be reached at specified
2         times; and
3             (C) copies of all travel documents;
4         (2) a prohibition of the respondent directly or
5     indirectly:
6             (A) removing the child from this State, the United
7         States, or another geographic area without permission
8         of the court or the petitioner's written consent;
9             (B) removing or retaining the child in violation of
10         a child-custody determination;
11             (C) removing the child from school or a child-care
12         or similar facility; or
13             (D) approaching the child at any location other
14         than a site designated for supervised visitation;
15         (3) a requirement that a party to register the order in
16     another state as a prerequisite to allowing the child to
17     travel to that state;
18         (4) with regard to the child's passport:
19             (A) a direction that the petitioner to place the
20         child's name in the United States Department Of State's
21         child passport issuance alert program;
22             (B) a requirement that the respondent surrender to
23         the court or the petitioner's attorney any United
24         States or foreign passport issued in the child's name,
25         including a passport issued in the name of both the
26         parent and the child; and

 

 

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1             (C) a prohibition upon the respondent from
2         applying on behalf of the child for a new or
3         replacement passport or visa;
4         (5) as a prerequisite to exercising custody or
5     visitation, a requirement that the respondent provide:
6             (A) to the United States Department of State Office
7         of Children's Issues and the relevant foreign
8         consulate or embassy, an authenticated copy of the
9         order detailing passport and travel restrictions for
10         the child;
11             (B) to the court:
12                 (i) proof that the respondent has provided the
13             information in subparagraph (A); and
14                 (ii) an acknowledgment in a record from the
15             relevant foreign consulate or embassy that no
16             passport application has been made, or passport
17             issued, on behalf of the child;
18             (C) to the petitioner, proof of registration with
19         the United States embassy or other United States
20         diplomatic presence in the destination country and
21         with the central authority for the Hague Convention on
22         the civil aspects of international child abduction, if
23         that Convention is in effect between the United States
24         and the destination country, unless one of the parties
25         objects; and
26             (D) a written waiver under the Privacy Act, 5

 

 

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1         U.S.C. Section 552a, as amended, with respect to any
2         document, application, or other information pertaining
3         to the child authorizing its disclosure to the court
4         and the petitioner; and
5         (6) upon the petitioner's request, a requirement that
6     the respondent obtain an order from the relevant foreign
7     country containing terms identical to the child-custody
8     determination issued in the United States.
9     (d) In an abduction prevention order, the court may impose
10 conditions on the exercise of custody or visitation that:
11         (1) limit visitation or require that visitation with
12     the child by the respondent be supervised until the court
13     finds that supervision is no longer necessary and order the
14     respondent to pay the costs of supervision;
15         (2) require the respondent to post a bond or provide
16     other security in an amount sufficient to serve as a
17     financial deterrent to abduction, the proceeds of which may
18     be used to pay for the reasonable expenses of recovery of
19     the child, including reasonable attorney's fees and costs
20     if there is an abduction; and
21         (3) require the respondent to obtain education on the
22     potentially harmful effects to the child from abduction.
23     (e) To prevent imminent abduction of a child, a court may:
24         (1) issue a warrant to take physical custody of the
25     child under Section 9, or the law of this State other than
26     this Act;

 

 

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1         (2) direct the use of law enforcement to take any
2     action reasonably necessary to locate the child, obtain
3     return of the child, or enforce a custody determination
4     under this Act or the law of this State other than this
5     Act; or
6         (3) grant any other relief allowed under the law of
7     this State other than this Act.
8     (f) The remedies provided in this Act are cumulative and do
9 not affect the availability of other remedies to prevent
10 abduction.
 
11     Section 9. Warrant to take physical custody of child.
12     (a) If a petition under this Act contains allegations, and
13 the court finds that there is a credible risk that the child is
14 imminently likely to be wrongfully removed, the court may issue
15 an ex parte warrant to take physical custody of the child.
16     (b) The respondent on a petition under subsection (a) must
17 be afforded an opportunity to be heard at the earliest possible
18 time after the ex parte warrant is executed, but not later than
19 the next judicial day unless a hearing on that date is
20 impossible. In that event, the court shall hold the hearing on
21 the first judicial day possible.
22     (c) An ex parte warrant under subsection (a) to take
23 physical custody of a child must:
24         (1) recite the facts upon which a determination of a
25     credible risk of imminent wrongful removal of the child is

 

 

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1     based;
2         (2) direct law enforcement officers to take physical
3     custody of the child immediately;
4         (3) state the date and time for the hearing on the
5     petition; and
6         (4) provide for the safe interim placement of the child
7     pending further order of the court.
8     (d) If feasible, before issuing a warrant and before
9 determining the placement of the child after the warrant is
10 executed, the court may order a search of the relevant
11 databases of the national crime information center system and
12 similar state databases to determine if either the petitioner
13 or respondent has a history of domestic violence, stalking, or
14 child abuse or neglect.
15     (e) The petition and warrant must be served on the
16 respondent when or immediately after the child is taken into
17 physical custody.
18     (f) A warrant to take physical custody of a child, issued
19 by this State or another state, is enforceable throughout this
20 State. If the court finds that a less intrusive remedy will not
21 be effective, it may authorize law enforcement officers to
22 enter private property to take physical custody of the child.
23 If required by exigent circumstances, the court may authorize
24 law enforcement officers to make a forcible entry at any hour.
25     (g) If the court finds, after a hearing, that a petitioner
26 sought an ex parte warrant under subsection (a) for the purpose

 

 

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1 of harassment or in bad faith, the court may award the
2 respondent reasonable attorney's fees, costs, and expenses.
3     (h) This Act does not affect the availability of relief
4 allowed under the law of this State other than this Act.
 
5     Section 10. Duration of abduction prevention order. An
6 abduction prevention order remains in effect until the earliest
7 of:
8         (1) the time stated in the order;
9         (2) the emancipation of the child;
10         (3) the child's attaining 18 years of age; or
11         (4) the time the order is modified, revoked, vacated,
12     or superseded by a court with jurisdiction under Sections
13     201 through 203 of the Uniform Child-Custody Jurisdiction
14     and Enforcement Act.
 
15     Section 11. Uniformity of application and construction. In
16 applying and construing this uniform Act, consideration must be
17 given to the need to promote uniformity of the law with respect
18 to its subject matter among states that enact it.
 
19     Section 12. Relation to the Electronic Signatures in Global
20 and National Commerce Act. This Act modifies, limits, and
21 supersedes the federal Electronic Signatures in Global and
22 National Commerce Act, 15 U.S.C. Section 7001, et seq., but
23 does not modify, limit, or supersede Section 101(c) of the Act,

 

 

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1 15 U.S.C. Section 7001(c), or authorize electronic delivery of
2 any of the notices described in Section 103(b) of that Act, 15
3 U.S.C. Section 7003(b).