§49-7-1. Confidentiality of records.

(a) Except as otherwise provided in this chapter or by order of the court, all records and
information concerning a child or juvenile which are maintained by the division of juvenile
services, the department of health and human resources, a child agency or facility, court or
law-enforcement agency shall be kept confidential and shall not be released or disclosed to
anyone, including any federal or state agency.
(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) of this section or any other provision of
this code to the contrary, records concerning a child or juvenile, except adoption records,
juvenile court records and records disclosing the identity of a person making a complaint of child
abuse or neglect shall be made available:

(1) Where otherwise authorized by this chapter;
(2) To:
(A) The child;
(B) A parent whose parental rights have not been terminated; or
(C) The attorney of the child or parent;
(3) With the written consent of the child or of someone authorized to act on the child’s
behalf; or
(4) Pursuant to a subpoena or order of a court of record; however, a subpoena for such
records may be quashed by a court for good cause.
(c) In addition to those persons or entities to whom information may be disclosed under
subsection (b) of this section, information related to child abuse or neglect proceedings, except
information relating to the identity of the person reporting or making a complaint of child abuse or
neglect, shall be made available, upon request, to:
(1) Federal, state or local government entities, or any agent of such entities, including
law-enforcement agencies and prosecuting attorneys, having a need for such information in order
to carry out its responsibilities under law to protect children from abuse and neglect;
(2) The child fatality review team;
(3) Child abuse citizen review panels;
(4) Multidisciplinary investigative and treatment teams; or
(5) A grand jury, circuit court or family law master, upon a finding that information in the
records is necessary for the determination of an issue before the grand jury, circuit court or family
law master.
(d) In the event of a child fatality or near fatality due to child abuse and neglect, information
relating to such fatality or near fatality shall be made public by the department of health and
human resources and to the entities described in subsection (c) of this section, all under the
circumstances described in that subsection: Provided, That information released by the
department of health and human resources pursuant to this subsection shall not include the identity
of a person reporting or making a complaint of child abuse or neglect. For purposes of this
subsection, "near fatality" means any medical condition of the child which is certified by the
attending physician to be life-threatening.
(e) Except in juvenile proceedings which are transferred to criminal proceedings,
law-enforcement records and files concerning a child or juvenile shall be kept separate from the
records and files of adults and not included within the court files. Law-enforcement records and
files concerning a child or juvenile shall only be open to inspection pursuant to the provisions of
sections seventeen and eighteen, article five of this chapter.
(f) Any person who willfully violates the provisions of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor
and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not more than one thousand dollars, or confined in the
county or regional jail for not more than six months, or be both fined and confined. A person
convicted of violating the provisions of this section shall also be liable for damages in the amount
of three hundred dollars or actual damages, whichever is greater.
(g) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, or any other provision of this code to the
contrary, the name and identity of any juvenile adjudicated or convicted of a violent or felonious
crime shall be made available to the public.