In dependency cases, “a child’s sense of time is extremely important.” Allen Superior Court, Family Relations Division, Judge Charles Pratt emphasized this in a recent training on the new CHINS (Child in Need of Services) Timeliness Measures. Juvenile judges must be conscious of how court performance, including delays, affects children in their jurisdictions. The new timeliness measures being implemented by Indiana’s … [Read more...] about CHINS UP: New tools to measure milestones in child welfare cases
Children
Casey Family Programs: 2020 Strategy
Since 2007, Casey Family Programs has had the privilege to work in close partnership with the Indiana Department of Child Services (DCS). To date, our efforts with DCS have supported several key initiatives, including: internal management development father engagement permanency roundtables (internal case consultations to identify innovative strategies to promote child permanency attainment) improvements in data … [Read more...] about Casey Family Programs: 2020 Strategy
New Staff Attorneys at State Court Administration
The Indiana Supreme Court’s Division of State Court Administration welcomed their newest Staff Attorney, Ruth Reichard. Ruth brings with her over 27 years of combined litigation, judicial and teaching experience, as well as a passion for domestic violence issues. She served as a Deputy Prosecuting Attorney in Marion County, and then as a Judge in the Marion Municipal Courts from 1991 through 2000. Thereafter, she s … [Read more...] about New Staff Attorneys at State Court Administration
A Toolkit for Helping Children
“The test of the morality of a society is what it does for its children.” —Dietrich Bonhoeffer The same can be said of our courts, particularly those that deal with children in abuse or neglect cases. Juvenile courts handling termination of parental rights (TPR) and Children in Need of Services (CHINS) cases are faced daily with the dilemma of how to improve court procedures and provide more stability for children goi … [Read more...] about A Toolkit for Helping Children
Indiana’s Parenting Time Guidelines Revised
In the first comprehensive revision since their adoption, the Indiana Supreme Court recently amended Indiana’s Parenting Time Guidelines (Guidelines). The Guidelines, which were first effective March 31, 2001, were revised in 2008 concerning parental relocation. The new Guidelines became effective March 1, 2013. Preparation of Parenting Time Guideline revisions The Guidelines are a product of the Domestic Relations C … [Read more...] about Indiana’s Parenting Time Guidelines Revised