Felissa Jones and J.J., a Minor by and Through His Mother and Next Friend Felissa Jones v. Mississippi Department of…

Summary

The Court held that Mississippi law does not require the Mississippi Department of Child Protection Services to investigate reports of abuse by school staff as youth-court matters. Under the plain language of the youth-court statutes, school abuse reports are out-of-home-setting reports that must be referred to law enforcement, while any investigation is limited to determining whether the child falls within youth-court jurisdiction. The Court also held that the challenge to the former policy was moot and that the current policy complied with the governing statutes, affirming judgment on the pleadings for the Department.