BILL ANALYSIS Ó AB 424 Page 1 Date of Hearing: April 15, 2015 ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS Jimmy Gomez, Chair AB 424 (Beth Gaines) - As Amended March 18, 2015 ----------------------------------------------------------------- |Policy |Judiciary |Vote:|10 - 0 | |Committee: | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |-------------+-------------------------------+-----+-------------| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |-------------+-------------------------------+-----+-------------| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: NoReimbursable: No SUMMARY: This bill allows a Court-Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) to be appointed in a delinquency proceeding. Specifically, this bill: 1)Allows a CASA to be appointed on behalf of a ward subject to juvenile court jurisdiction. AB 424 Page 2 2)Allows a CASA to participate in any delinquency proceeding after the adjudication of delinquency and in any dual-status proceeding. 3)Provides that a CASA is not prevented from appearing in a delinquency or criminal court proceeding when the CASA is acting as a support person to the child or is in court on behalf of a child who is a crime victim. 4)Clarifies that a CASA is considered to be court personnel for purposes of access to court records, thus allowing the CASA access to his or her appointed child's case file. FISCAL EFFECT: Minor and absorbable General Fund costs to train additional CASA volunteers. COMMENTS: 1.Purpose. According to the author, although current law is ambiguous regarding the appointment of CASAs for wards of the court, many courts today already appoint CASAs in delinquency proceedings. However, some courts do not, based on the restrictive language in the statute. This bill clarifies that CASAs can be appointed to advocate on behalf of wards subject to juvenile court jurisdiction. This bill limits a CASA's appointment to a ward until after the court has made its initial adjudication of delinquency. 2.Background. A CASA is a trained and supervised volunteer, AB 424 Page 3 appointed at the discretion of the juvenile court judge to help determine the best interests of the child and to advocate on the child's behalf. When a child is removed from a family due to abuse or neglect, county social workers, dependency counsel, foster parents, and the court are all involved. However, social workers and dependency counsel often have too many cases to adequately give each one the attention it needs. In addition, foster care placements change, sometimes frequently, leaving a child without a constant adult advocate. To better understand the child's needs and provide some constancy for the child, the juvenile court may appoint a CASA when the court determines that a child requires CASA services. Analysis Prepared by:Jennifer Swenson / APPR. / (916) 319-2081