FYI FYI FYI FYI

F O R Y O U R I N F O R M A T I O N

Issue / 05-13 / Date: / 03/07/05
ABDUCTED AND RUNAWAY KIDS SYSTEM (ARKS) WEB-SITE
(Update)
The release of this FYI updates contact information for the ARKS web-site and cancels FYI 03-15, Abducted and Runaway Kids System (ARKS) Web-Site.
In order to facilitate the return of abducted and runaway children, who are under the jurisdiction of the Los Angeles County Juvenile Court, DCFS maintains the Abducted/Runaway Kids Web-site (ARKS). ARKS is an Internet web-site that contains identifying information and photographs of all dependent children who are currently missing due to being abducted or run away.
Designated Juvenile Court Services staff will responsible for entering the data about the abducted and runaway children for whom a protective custody warrant has been requested and/or issued. The section is responsible for entering the recovery date and warrant recall information once a child has returned in order to remove that child’s profile and photo from the ARKS web-site. In order to expedite this process CSW should do the following:

Adding a Child to ARKS

Any dependent child who has an active warrant will be added to ARKS. DCFS will also include all abducted and runaway children on the web-site regardless of whether the court has issued a warrant or not. This includes dependent children who are 18 years or older.
To add an abducted or runaway child to the ARKS web-site, the CSWs should send the following information to the ARKS Unit:
·  Warrant Request (Walk – On Report to court) with identifying information
·  Color Photograph of child (black and white photos accepted if color is not available) Do not fax photographs. All photographs must be sent via e-mail or by mail along with the Warrant request.
/ / If you have any questions regarding this release please
e-mail your question to:

Clerical Handbook: http://198.51.213.151/Policy/Hndbook%20Clerical/Default.htm

Child Welfare Services Handbook: http://198.51.213.151/Policy/Hndbook%20CWS/default.htm

FYI’s: http://dcfs.co.la.ca.us/Policy/FYI/TOCFYI.HTM

If the information is sent in with a court report other than a walk-on report the CSW shall:

contact ARKS Unit by phone at (323) 526-6761, or e-mail the ARKS Unit with the child’s identifying information, a copy of the child’s photograph and age of the child in the photograph, and the event date (i.e., the date the child ran away or was abducted).

Removing a Child From ARKS

Dependent children with an active warrant will be removed from ARKS when the court recalls the warrant or terminates jurisdiction. Dependent children without an active warrant who are 18 years old, will be removed from ARKS when they are recovered and returned to DCFS placement, or when the court terminates jurisdiction. Designated SPA staff will enter data on ARKS for children who run away and return prior to a protective custody warrant request being prepared and mailed to the ARKS Unit (i.e. a short duration such as 24 hours or less).

To get a child with an issued or requested protective custody warrant removed from the ARKS web-site, the CSWs shall contact the ARKS Unit and provide the following information:

·  The date the warrant was recalled or the date court terminated jurisdiction; and

·  The date the child was located and returned.

In addition to contacting the ARKS Unit to have a child added or removed from ARKS, CSWs are asked to follow all existing policies regarding:

·  Timeframes for notifying the court that a child is missing

·  Preparation of the protective warrant request

·  Notification to the Child Abduction Unit whenever a child is abducted

PHOTOGRAPHS FROM KidPix:

The photos used on the ARKS web-site are also available on KidPix. Pictures on KidPix that are determined to be appropriate in terms of size and quality for the ARKS web-site will be used. (Note: the ARKS Unit may edit the photo to fit the dimensions needed for the site). Please do not add any photographs to ARKS; e-mail or mail copies of the photographs to the ARKS Unit for posting on ARKS.

Data Entry by Regional Offices

Designated SPA Staff will enter the following data into ARKS:

·  Runaway episodes of short duration (24 hours or less) all other runaway episodes shall go through the ARKS Unit.

·  Efforts to locate the child

·  Circumstances surrounding the runaway episode

·  Checking the applicable check-box on the system if a child was recovered as a result of a tip to the Child Protection Hotline (CPH)

Any questions regarding the ARKS web-site and these procedures can be addressed by calling or by e-mailing the ARKS Unit, at 323-526-6761.