§ 28-387 — Short-term protective services; temporary placement; authorized; when; procedure

(1) A county court may issue an ex parte order authorizing the provision
of short-term involuntary adult protective services or temporary placement
for a vulnerable adult for up to forty-eight hours, excluding nonjudicial
days, pending the hearing for a need for continuing services, after finding
on the record that:
(a) The person is a vulnerable adult;
(b) An emergency exists; and
(c) There are compelling reasons for ordering protective services
or temporary placement.
(2) An ex parte order shall be issued only if other protective
custody services are unavailable or other services provide insufficient protection.
(3) The department shall contact the appropriate county attorney
to file an application for short-term involuntary adult protective services
or temporary placement if an investigation indicates probable cause to believe
that an emergency exists for a vulnerable adult. The department shall not
be given legal custody nor be made guardian of such vulnerable adult. A vulnerable
adult shall be responsible for the costs of services provided either through
his or her own income or other programs for which he or she may be eligible.
(4) A law enforcement officer accompanied by a representative
of the department may enter the premises where the vulnerable adult is located
after obtaining the court order and announcing his or her authority and purpose.
Forcible entry may be made only after the court order has been obtained unless
there is probable cause to believe that the delay of such entry would cause
the vulnerable adult to be in imminent danger of life-threatening physical
injury or neglect.
(5) When, from the personal observations of a representative
of the department and a law enforcement officer, it appears probable that
the vulnerable adult is likely to be in imminent danger of life-threatening
physical injury or neglect if
he or she is not immediately removed from the premises, the law enforcement
agency shall, when authorized by the court order, take into custody and transport
the vulnerable adult to an appropriate medical or protective placement facility.
(6) When action is taken under this section, a hearing shall
be held within forty-eight hours of the signing of the court order, excluding
nonjudicial days, to establish probable cause for short-term involuntary adult
protective services or for protective placement. Unless the vulnerable adult
has counsel of his or her own choice or has indicated a desire for an attorney
of his or her own choice, the court shall appoint an attorney to represent
him or her in the proceeding, who shall have the powers and duties of a guardian
ad litem.
(7) Notice of the hearing shall be served personally on the
vulnerable adult. Waiver of notice by the vulnerable adult shall not be effective
unless he or she attends the hearing or such notice is waived by the guardian
ad litem. Notice of the hearing shall be given to the following parties whose
whereabouts can be readily ascertained: (a) The spouse of the vulnerable adult;
(b) children of the vulnerable adult; and (c) any other party specified by
the court.
(8) A judgment authorizing continuance of short-term involuntary
adult protective services shall prescribe those specific adult protective
services which are to be provided, the duration of the services which shall
not exceed sixty days, and the person or persons who are authorized or ordered
to provide them.

Legislative History

Source: Laws 1988, LB 463, § 40; Laws 2012, LB1051, § 16.