The following excerpt is from Akey v. Placer Cnty., No. 2:14-cv-02402-KJM-KJN (E.D. Cal. 2015):
The Fourth Amendment protects children and families from warrantless removal of a child from their home. See Doe v. Lebbos, 348 F.3d 820, 827 n.9 (9th Cir. 2003). Absent exigent circumstances, a warrant must be obtained to remove a child from the home. Rogers v. Cnty. of San Joaquin, 487 F.3d 1288, 1291 (9th Cir. 2007). Exigent circumstances are those which establish a risk of imminent harm in the time it would take to get a warrant. See id. "Officials may remove a child from the custody of [the] parent without prior judicial authorization only if the information they possess at the time of the seizure is such as provides reasonable cause to believe that the child is in imminent danger of serious bodily injury and that the scope of the intrusion is reasonably necessary to avert that specific injury. Wallis v. Spencer, 202 F.3d 1126, 1138 (9th Cir. 2000).
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