When Rescue Is Urgent: Children in Shelter Placement for Seven Days or Less.

This study examined the circumstances of children in Hennepin County, Minnesota, who were removed from their homes under urgent circumstances and placed for 7 days or less in emergency shelter care. It investigated whether shelter placement was the least intrusive response for the safety of the children in emergency situations and clarified the working relationship between child protection workers and local law enforcement officers. Data came from administrative information collected by St. Joseph's Home for Children during 1999 and from interviews with child protection workers and supervisors; St. Joseph's staff members, administrators, and intake workers; the Minneapolis Chief of Police; the supervisor of and workers in the community-based first response unit; and precinct-based child protection workers. Nearly 62 percent of children were brought in by police under an emergency placement authority. One-third came in under court order. The most common reasons for emergency placements were neglect and physical and sexual abuse, parent/caretaker incarceration, and parent abandonment. African American children were disproportionately represented in all age groups. About 15 percent of children were in repetitive placements. Prior to entering St. Joseph's, most children lived in single parent households. Most younger children, but only one-quarter of older children, were returned to families or relatives within 7 days. (SM)