Virginia Law

The following words and terms when used in this chapter shall have the following meanings unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:

"Annual" means within 13 months of the previous event or occurrence.

"Board" means Board of Juvenile Justice.

"Case record" or "record" means written or electronic information relating to one resident and the resident's family, if applicable. This information includes, but is not limited to, social, medical, psychiatric, and psychological records; reports; demographic information; agreements; all correspondence relating to care of the resident; service plans with periodic revisions; aftercare plans and discharge summary; and any other information related to the resident.

"Contraband" means any item possessed by or accessible to a resident or found within a facility or on its premises (i) that is prohibited by statute, regulation, or facility procedure, (ii) that is not acquired through approved channels or in prescribed amounts, or (iii) that may jeopardize the safety and security of the facility or individual residents.

"Department" or "DJJ" means the Department of Juvenile Justice.

"Direct care staff" means the staff whose primary job responsibilities are (i) maintaining the safety, care, and well-being of residents and (ii) implementing the structured program of care and behavior management program.

"Direct supervision" means that the staff may work with residents while not in the presence of direct care staff. Staff members who provide direct supervision are responsible for maintaining the safety, care, and well-being of the residents in addition to providing services or performing the primary responsibilities of that position.

"Director" means the Director of the Department of Juvenile Justice.

"Emergency" means a sudden, generally unexpected occurrence or set of circumstances demanding immediate action such as a fire, chemical release, loss of utilities, natural disaster, taking of hostages, major disturbances, escape, and bomb threats. Emergency does not include regularly scheduled employee time off or other situations that could be reasonably anticipated.

"Facility administrator" means the individual who has the responsibility for the on-site management and operation of the facility on a regular basis.

"Family oriented group home" means a private home in which residents may reside upon placement by a lawful placing agency.

"Group home" means a juvenile residential facility that is a community based, home-like single dwelling, or its acceptable equivalent, other than the private home of the operator, and does not exceed the capacity approved by the regulatory authority. For the purpose of this chapter, a group home includes a halfway house that houses residents in transition from a commitment to the department.

"Individual service plan" or "service plan" means a written plan of action developed, revised as necessary, and reviewed at intervals to meet the needs of a resident. The individual service plan specifies (i) measurable short-term and long-term goals and (ii) the objectives, strategies, and time frames for reaching the goals.

"Juvenile residential facility" or "facility" means a publicly or privately operated facility or placement where 24-hour per day care is provided to residents who are separated from their legal guardians and that is required to be certified. As used in this regulation, the term includes, but is not necessarily limited to, group homes, family-oriented group homes, and halfway houses and excludes juvenile correctional centers and juvenile detention centers.

"Living unit" means the space in which a particular group of residents in care of a juvenile residential facility resides. A living unit contains sleeping areas, bath and toilet facilities, and a living room or its equivalent for use by the residents of the living unit. Depending upon its design, a building may contain one living unit or several separate living units.

"On duty" means the period of time an employee is responsible for the direct supervision of one or more residents.

"Parent" or "legal guardian" means (i) a biological or adoptive parent who has legal custody of an individual, including either parent if custody is shared under a joint decree or agreement; (ii) a biological or adoptive parent with whom the individual regularly resides; (iii) a person judicially appointed as a legal guardian; or (iv) a person who exercises the rights and responsibilities of legal custody by delegation from a biological or adoptive parent, upon provisional adoption, or otherwise by operation of law.

"Placement" means an activity by any person that provides assistance to a placing agency, parent, or legal guardian in locating and effecting the movement of a resident to a juvenile residential facility.

"Placing agency" means (i) any person, group, court, court service unit, or agency licensed or authorized by law to place residents in a juvenile residential facility or (ii) a local board of social services authorized to place residents in a juvenile residential facility.

"Premises" means the tracts of land on which any part of a facility is located and any buildings on such tracts of land.

"Provider" means the person, corporation, partnership, association, locality, commission, or public agency to whom a license or certificate is issued and who is legally responsible for compliance with the regulatory and statutory requirements relating to the facility.

"Regulatory authority" means the board or the department as designated by the board.

"Resident" means an individual who is legally placed in, formally placed in, or admitted to a juvenile residential facility for supervision, care, training, or treatment on a 24-hour per day basis.

"Rules of conduct" means a listing of a facility's rules or regulations that is maintained to inform residents and others of the behavioral expectations of the behavior management program, about behaviors that are not permitted, and about the sanctions that may be applied when impermissible behaviors occur.

"Shelter care facility" means a facility or an emergency shelter specifically approved to provide a range of services, as needed, on an individual basis not to exceed 90 days.

"Written" means the required information is communicated in writing. Such writing may be available in either hard copy or in electronic form.