NCJ Number
127142
Journal
Juvenile and Family Law Digest Volume: 22 Issue: 12 Dated: (December 1990) Pages: 391-393
Editor(s)
L G Arthur
Date Published
1990
Length
3 pages
Annotation
A New Jersey appellate court ruled that a trial court's decision to admit the press to a juvenile pretrial hearing pertaining to the emergency removal of a child from the parental home was proper, since there was no embarrassing element of sexual abuse or other overt abuse involved in the case.
Abstract
The issue in the case was whether or not the child's sole parent, i.e., his father, was unable to care properly for the child during the father's debilitating episodes of mental illness. During such episodes, the father would often leave his 3-year-old son in the care of neighbors or relatives. There was no evidence of physical or sexual abuse, and no such allegations were included in the complaint brought by the Division of Youth and Family Services. In opening the preliminary hearing to the press, the trial court reasoned that nothing in the allegations would, if revealed, become a psychological burden for the child now or in the future. In such a case, according to the court, the public's right to attend judicial proceedings is not outweighed by the State's compelling interest in conducting a private hearing to protect the best interests of the child. The appellate court affirmed the trial court's decision.