NCJ Number
138463
Journal
Child Abuse and Neglect: The International Journal Volume: 16 Issue: 4 Dated: (July/August 1992) Pages: 465-474
Date Published
1992
Length
10 pages
Annotation
This study examined the progress through the child protective system of a sample of 206 severely abused or neglected children brought before the Boston Juvenile Court on care-and-protection (C and P) petitions during 1985-86.
Abstract
Court records were continuously monitored and served as the primary source of data for this study. The data analysis focused on a variety of parent, child, demographic, case, and court variables in an effort to discover factors associated with time delays in case processing. The study found that overall, children were in the system an average of 5 years from the filing of the first official report of mistreatment to the resolution of their cases. The families had been known to the State child protective service agency for an average of more than 2.5 years before the current court involvement. Once arraigned in juvenile court on the C and P petition, the average case took approximately 1.5 years to reach disposition. After disposition, children permanently removed from parental custody required, on average, an additional year and a half in probate court to receive permanent placement. Of the more than 20 variables examined, including severity of mistreatment, protective service history, and parental mental illness, no significant pattern emerged that could predict delays. This study characterizes the delays experienced by many abused and neglected children and highlights the necessity of closer monitoring of the progress of cases through the protective and court systems. 1 figure, 1 table, and 24 references