NCJ Number
177290
Date Published
1999
Length
36 pages
Annotation
This analysis of juvenile courts' handling of child abuse and neglect cases focuses on the major problems in the juvenile dependency court system and State and local responses to these problems.
Abstract
Study information came from a literature review, interviews of State and Federal officials and experts on the dependency court processes, and site visits to five juvenile dependency courts. Results revealed that the juvenile dependency court system continues to have serious systemic problems. These include a lack of cooperation between the courts and child welfare agencies, data management problems, large court caseloads, insufficient training of judges and attorneys, and inadequate information systems. Some States have responded to these problems by initiating court reforms to reduce the length of time children spend in foster care and improve the quality of the decisions made by the courts. Some reforms aim to improve the overall operation and infrastructure of the courts. Other reforms focus on improving the quality of decision making in individual cases. These reforms include holding mediation sessions and increasing the time allotted for specific hearings. State and local officials noted three elements of successful reforms: (1) the presence of judicial leadership and collaboration among court participants, (2) the availability of timely information on case processing performance, and (3) the availability of financial resources to initiate and sustain reforms. Footnotes, appended methodological information, and list of related General Accounting Office reports