1. A child is in need of protection if:

(a) The child has been abandoned by a person responsible for the welfare of the child;

(b) The child has been subjected to abuse or neglect by a person responsible for the welfare of the child;

(c) The child is in the care of a person responsible for the welfare of the child and another child has:

(1) Died as a result of abuse or neglect by that person; or

(2) Been subjected to abuse by that person, unless the person has successfully completed a plan for services that was recommended by an agency which provides child welfare services pursuant to NRS 432B.340 to address the abuse of the other child;

(d) The child has been placed for care or adoption in violation of law; or

(e) The child has been delivered to a provider of emergency services pursuant to NRS 432B.630.

2. A child may be in need of protection if the person responsible for the welfare of the child:

(a) Is unable to discharge his or her responsibilities to and for the child because of incarceration, hospitalization, or other physical or mental incapacity;

(b) Fails, although the person is financially able to do so or has been offered financial or other means to do so, to provide for the following needs of the child:

(1) Food, clothing or shelter necessary for the child’s health or safety;

(2) Education as required by law; or

(3) Adequate medical care;

(c) Has been responsible for the neglect of a child who has resided with that person; or

(d) Has been responsible for the abuse of another child regardless of whether that person has successfully completed a plan for services that was recommended by an agency which provides child welfare services pursuant to NRS 432B.340 to address the abuse of the other child.

3. A child may be in need of protection if the death of a parent of the child is or may be the result of an act by the other parent that constitutes domestic violence pursuant to NRS 33.018.

4. A child may be in need of protection if the child is identified as being affected by a fetal alcohol spectrum disorder or prenatal substance use disorder or as having withdrawal symptoms resulting from prenatal substance exposure.

5. A child is not in need of protection solely because the person responsible for the welfare of the child:

(a) Is deaf, is blind, as defined in NRS 426.082, or has another physical disability; or

(b) Is the holder of a valid registry identification card. As used in this paragraph, “holder of a valid registry identification card” means a person who holds a valid registry identification card as defined in NRS 678C.080 that identifies the person as:

(1) Exempt from state prosecution for engaging in the medical use of cannabis; or

(2) A designated primary caregiver as defined in NRS 678C.040.

6. As used in this section:

(a) “Abuse” means:

(1) Physical or mental injury of a nonaccidental nature; or

(2) Sexual abuse or sexual exploitation,

of a child caused or allowed by a person responsible for the welfare of the child under circumstances which indicate that the child’s health or welfare is harmed or threatened with harm. The term does not include the actions described in subsection 2 of NRS 432B.020.

(b) “Allow” means to do nothing to prevent or stop the abuse or neglect of a child in circumstances where the person knows or has reason to know that a child is abused or neglected.

(c) “Neglect” means abandonment or failure to:

(1) Provide for the needs of a child set forth in paragraph (b) of subsection 2; or

(2) Provide proper care, control and supervision of a child as necessary for the well-being of the child because of the faults or habits of the person responsible for the welfare of the child or the neglect or refusal of the person to provide them when able to do so.

The term does not include the actions described in subsection 2 of NRS 432B.020.

(Added to NRS by 1985, 1371; A 1991, 52; 1999, 830; 2001, 1256; 2005, 2038; 2015, 1183; 2017, 1386; 2019, 2760, effective July 1, 2020)