Wisconsin Code § 48.02

Definitions
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In this chapter, unless otherwise defined:
(1) “Abuse,” other than when used in referring to abuse of alcohol beverages or other drugs, means any of the following:
(a) Physical injury inflicted on a child by other than accidental
means.
(am) When used in referring to an unborn child, serious physical harm inflicted on the unborn child, and the risk of serious
physical harm to the child when born, caused by the habitual lack
of self-control of the expectant mother of the unborn child in the
use of alcohol beverages, controlled substances or controlled substance analogs, exhibited to a severe degree.
(b) Sexual intercourse or sexual contact under s. 940.225,
948.02, 948.025, or 948.085.
(c) A violation of s. 948.05.
(cm) A violation of s. 948.051.
(d) Permitting, allowing or encouraging a child to violate s.
944.30 (1m).
(e) A violation of s. 948.055.
(em) Grooming of a child for sexual activity under s. 948.072.
(f) A violation of s. 948.10.
(g) Manufacturing methamphetamine in violation of s. 961.41
(1) (e) under any of the following circumstances:
1. With a child physically present during the manufacture.
2. In a child’s home, on the premises of a child’s home, or in
a motor vehicle located on the premises of a child’s home.
3. Under any other circumstances in which a reasonable person should have known that the manufacture would be seen,
smelled, or heard by a child.
(gm) Emotional damage for which the child’s parent,
guardian or legal custodian has neglected, refused or been unable
for reasons other than poverty to obtain the necessary treatment
or to take steps to ameliorate the symptoms.
(1d) “Adult” means a person who is 18 years of age or older,
except that for purposes of investigating or prosecuting a person
who is alleged to have violated any state or federal criminal law
or any civil law or municipal ordinance, “adult” means a person
who has attained 17 years of age.
(1dm) “Age or developmentally appropriate activities”
means activities that are generally accepted as suitable for children of a given chronological age or level of maturity or that are
determined to be developmentally appropriate for a child based
on the cognitive, emotional, physical, and behavioral capacities
that are typical for children of a given age or age group or, in the
case of a specific child, activities that are suitable for the child
based on the cognitive, emotional, physical, and behavioral capacities of that child.
(1e) “Alcohol and other drug abuse impairment” means a
condition of a person which is exhibited by characteristics of habitual lack of self-control in the use of alcohol beverages, controlled substances or controlled substance analogs to the extent
that the person’s health is substantially affected or endangered or
the person’s social or economic functioning is substantially
disrupted.
(1m) “Alcoholism” has the meaning given in s. 51.01 (1m).
(1s) “Approved treatment facility” has the meaning given in
s. 51.01 (2).
(2) “Child,” when used without further qualification, means a
person who is less than 18 years of age, except that for purposes
of investigating or prosecuting a person who is alleged to have violated a state or federal criminal law or any civil law or municipal
ordinance, “child” does not include a person who has attained 17
years of age.
(2d) “Controlled substance” has the meaning given in s.
961.01 (4).
(2e) “Controlled substance analog” has the meaning given in
s. 961.01 (4m).
(2f) “Coordinated services plan of care” has the meaning
given in s. 46.56 (1) (cm).
(2g) “County department” means a county department under
s. 46.22 or 46.23, unless the context requires otherwise.
(2m) “Court,” when used without further qualification,
means the court assigned to exercise jurisdiction under this chapter and ch. 938.
(3) “Court intake worker” means any person designated to
provide intake services under s. 48.067.
(3t) “Dental care,” for purposes of providing ordinary medical and dental care, means routine dental care, including diagnostic and preventative services, and treatment including restoring
teeth, tooth extractions, and use of nitrous oxide.
(4) “Department” means the department of children and
families.
(5) “Developmentally disabled” means having a developmental disability, as defined in s. 51.01 (5).
(5g) “Drug dependent” has the meaning given in s. 51.01
(8b).
(5j) “Emotional damage” means harm to a child’s psychological or intellectual functioning. “Emotional damage” shall be evidenced by one or more of the following characteristics exhibited
to a severe degree: anxiety; depression; withdrawal; outward aggressive behavior; or a substantial and observable change in behavior, emotional response or cognition that is not within the normal range for the child’s age and stage of development.

(5m) “Foreign jurisdiction” means a jurisdiction outside of
the United States.
(6) “Foster home” means any facility that is operated by a
person required to be licensed by s. 48.62 (1) and that provides
care and maintenance for no more than 4 children or, if necessary
to enable a sibling group to remain together, for no more than 6
children or, if the department promulgates rules permitting a different number of children, for the number of children permitted
under those rules.
(7) “Group home” means any facility operated by a person required to be licensed by the department under s. 48.625 for the
care and maintenance of 5 to 8 children, as provided in s. 48.625
(1).
(8) “Guardian” means the person named by the court having
the duty and authority of guardianship.
(8d) “Indian” means any person who is a member of an Indian tribe or who is an Alaska native and a member of a regional
corporation, as defined in 43 USC 1606.
(8g) “Indian child” means any unmarried person who is under the age of 18 years and is affiliated with an Indian tribe in any
of the following ways:
(a) As a member of the Indian tribe.
(b) As a person who is eligible for membership in an Indian
tribe and is the biological child of a member of an Indian tribe.
(8m) “Indian child’s tribe” means one of the following:
(a) The Indian tribe in which an Indian child is a member or
eligible for membership.
(b) In the case of an Indian child who is a member of or eligible for membership in more than one tribe, the Indian tribe with
which the Indian child has the more significant contacts.
(8p) “Indian custodian” means an Indian person who has legal custody of an Indian child under tribal law or custom or under
state law or to whom temporary physical care, custody, and control has been transferred by the parent of the child.
(8r) “Indian tribe” means any Indian tribe, band, nation, or
other organized group or community of Indians that is recognized
as eligible for the services provided to Indians by the U.S. secretary of the interior because of Indian status, including any Alaska
native village, as defined in 43 USC 1602 (c).
(10) “Judge”, if used without further qualification, means the
judge of the court assigned to exercise jurisdiction under this
chapter and ch. 938.
(10m) “Juvenile correctional facility” has the meaning given
in s. 938.02 (10p).
(10r) “Juvenile detention facility” means a locked facility approved by the department of corrections under s. 301.36 for the
secure, temporary holding in custody of children.
(11) “Legal custodian” means a person, other than a parent or
guardian, or an agency to whom legal custody of the child has
been transferred by a court, but does not include a person who has
only physical custody of the child.
(12) “Legal custody” means a legal status created by the order
of a court, which confers the right and duty to protect, train and
discipline the child, and to provide food, shelter, legal services,
education and ordinary medical and dental care, subject to the
rights, duties and responsibilities of the guardian of the child and
subject to any residual parental rights and responsibilities and the
provisions of any court order.
(12c) “Like-kin” means an individual who has a significant
emotional relationship with a child or the child’s family that is
similar to a familial relationship and who is not and has not previously been the child’s licensed foster parent. For an Indian child,
“like-kin” includes individuals identified by the child’s tribe according to tribal tradition, custom or resolution, code, or law.
(12g) “Neglect” means failure, refusal or inability on the part
of a caregiver, for reasons other than poverty, to provide necessary care, food, clothing, medical or dental care or shelter so as to
seriously endanger the physical health of the child.
(12m) “Nonidentifying social history information” means information about a person’s birth parent that may aid the person in
establishing a sense of identity. “Nonidentifying social history
information” may include, but is not limited to, the following information about a birth parent, but does not include any information that would disclose the name, location or identity of a birth
parent:
(a) Age at the time of the person’s birth.
(b) Nationality.
(c) Race.
(d) Education.
(e) General physical appearance.
(f) Talents, hobbies and special interests.
(h) Reason for placing the child for adoption or for the termination of parental rights.
(i) Religion.
(k) Family history.
(m) Personality traits of each parent.
(12r) “Out-of-home care provider” means a foster parent,
guardian, relative other than a parent, or nonrelative in whose
home a child is placed, or the operator of a group home, residential care center for children and youth, or shelter care facility in
which a child is placed, under the placement and care responsibility of the department or a county department. “Out-of-home care
provider” also includes, in the case of a child placed in a group
home, residential care center for children and youth, or shelter
care facility, a staff member employed on the site of that home,
center, or facility who has been designated by the operator of that
home, center, or facility as an out-of-home care provider for purposes of making decisions concerning the child’s participation in
age or developmentally appropriate activities.
(13) “Parent” means a biological parent, a husband who has
consented to the artificial insemination of his wife under s.
891.40, or a parent by adoption. If the child is a nonmarital child
who is not adopted or whose parents do not subsequently intermarry under s. 767.803, “parent” includes a person conclusively
determined from genetic test results to be the father under s.
767.804 or a person acknowledged under s. 767.805 or a substantially similar law of another state or adjudicated to be the biological father. “Parent” does not include any person whose parental
rights have been terminated. For purposes of the application of s.
48.028 and the federal Indian Child Welfare Act, 25 USC 1901 to
1963, “parent” means a biological parent, an Indian husband who
has consented to the artificial insemination of his wife under s.
891.40, or an Indian person who has lawfully adopted an Indian
child, including an adoption under tribal law or custom, and includes, in the case of a nonmarital child who is not adopted or
whose parents do not subsequently intermarry under s. 767.803,
a person conclusively determined from genetic test results to be
the father under s. 767.804, a person acknowledged under s.
767.805, a substantially similar law of another state, or tribal law
or custom to be the biological father, or a person adjudicated to be
the biological father, but does not include any person whose
parental rights have been terminated.
(14) “Physical custody” means actual custody of the person
in the absence of a court order granting legal custody to the physical custodian.
(14g) “Physical injury” includes but is not limited to lacera-

tions, fractured bones, burns, internal injuries, severe or frequent
bruising or great bodily harm, as defined in s. 939.22 (14).
(14k) “Qualified individual” has the meaning given under 42
USC 675a (c) (1) (D).
(14m) “Qualifying residential family-based treatment facility” means a certified residential family-based alcohol or drug
abuse treatment facility that meets all of the following criteria:
(a) The treatment facility provides, as part of the treatment for
substance abuse, parenting skills training, parent education, and
individual and family counseling.
(b) The substance abuse treatment, parenting skills training,
parent education, and individual and family counseling is provided under an organizational structure and treatment framework
that involves understanding, recognizing, and responding to the
effects of all types of trauma and in accordance with recognized
principles of a trauma-informed approach and trauma-specific
interventions to address the consequences of trauma and facilitate
healing.
(14r) “Reasonable and prudent parent standard” means a
standard for an out-of-home care provider to use in making decisions concerning a child’s participation in age or developmentally
appropriate extracurricular, enrichment, cultural, and social activities that is characterized by careful and sensible parental decisions that maintain the health, safety, best interests, and cultural,
religious, and tribal values of the child while at the same time encouraging the emotional and developmental growth of the child.
(15) “Relative” means a parent, stepparent, brother, sister,
stepbrother, stepsister, half brother, half sister, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, first cousin, first cousin once removed, 2nd cousin,
nephew, niece, uncle, aunt, stepuncle, stepaunt, or any person of a
preceding generation as denoted by the prefix of grand, great, or
great-great, whether by blood, marriage, or legal adoption, or the
spouse of any person named in this subsection, even if the marriage is terminated by death or divorce. For purposes of the application of s. 48.028 and the federal Indian Child Welfare Act, 25
USC 1901 to 1963, “relative” includes an extended family member, as defined in s. 48.028 (2) (am), whether by blood, marriage,
or adoption, including adoption under tribal law or custom. For
purposes of placement of a child, “relative” also includes a parent
of a sibling of the child who has legal custody of that sibling.
(15d) “Residential care center for children and youth” means
a facility operated by a child welfare agency licensed under s.
48.60 for the care and maintenance of children residing in that
facility.
(16) “Secretary” means the secretary of children and
families.
(16m) “Secured residential care center for children and
youth” has the meaning given in s. 938.02 (15g).
(17) “Shelter care facility” means a nonsecure place of temporary care and physical custody for children, including a
holdover room, licensed by the department under s. 48.66 (1) (a).
(17m) “Special treatment or care” means professional services which need to be provided to a child or his or her family to
protect the well-being of the child, prevent placement of the child
outside the home or meet the special needs of the child. “Special
treatment or care” also means professional services which need to
be provided to the expectant mother of an unborn child to protect
the physical health of the unborn child and of the child when born
from the harmful effects resulting from the habitual lack of selfcontrol of the expectant mother in the use of alcohol, controlled
substances or controlled substance analogs, exhibited to a severe
degree. This term includes, but is not limited to, medical, psychological or psychiatric treatment, alcohol or other drug abuse
treatment or other services which the court finds to be necessary
and appropriate.
(17t) “Standardized assessment” means an assessment, using
a tool determined by the department, of the strengths and needs
of a child to determine appropriateness of a placement in a residential care center, group home, or shelter care facility certified
under s. 48.675. This definition does not apply to s. 48.62 (8) (b).
(18) “Trial” means a fact-finding hearing to determine
jurisdiction.
(18j) “Tribal court” means a court that has jurisdiction over
Indian child custody proceedings, and that is either a court of Indian offenses or a court established and operated under the code
or custom of an Indian tribe, or any other administrative body of
an Indian tribe that is vested with authority over Indian child custody proceedings.
(18m) “Tribal school” has the meaning given in s. 115.001
(15m).
(19) “Unborn child” means a human being from the time of
fertilization to the time of birth.

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