NCJ Number
139618
Date Published
1992
Length
83 pages
Annotation
This manual provides the basic information needed by professionals and concerned citizens to work effectively in the court system to provide protection for abused children.
Abstract
The manual opens with a history and overview of the juvenile court's handling of child maltreatment cases. This is followed by a discussion of the court system's handling of child abuse and neglect, including consideration of the decision about whether or not to go to court, the rights of parents and children in judicial proceedings, and general powers of the court. An overview of the civil child protective court process encompasses jurisdiction; the intake process and the petition; shelter care, detention, or temporary custody hearing; pretrial conferences and the negotiation of case settlements; discovery; the adjudicatory hearing; and the disposition hearing. Other subjects discussed in this section are periodic review, the termination-of-parental-rights hearings, and appeals. A major section on the criminal court process addresses arrest, bail, the charging decision, preliminary hearings, grand jury review, discovery, plea bargaining, trial, sentencing of convicted offenders, and appeals. An overview of the domestic relations court process considers custody, guardianship, or visitation-related proceedings; services available to domestic relations courts; and the transfer of cases to juvenile court. Other major sections of the manual discuss other court actions that involve maltreated children, pretrial caseworkers preparation, proving child maltreatment in court, testifying in court, and the child as a witness. Glossary, notes, and 43-item bibliography