BILL ANALYSIS Ó SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE Senator Hannah-Beth Jackson, Chair 2015-2016 Regular Session AB 424 (Beth Gaines) Version: March 18, 2015 Hearing Date: June 9, 2015 Fiscal: Yes Urgency: No NR SUBJECT Court appointed child advocates: wards DESCRIPTION This bill would authorize the appointment of a court appointed special advocate (CASA) in a juvenile delinquency proceeding, and would provide that a CASA shall be considered court personnel for purposes of inspecting the case file of a dependent child or ward of the juvenile court. BACKGROUND When a child is removed from his or her family because of abuse or neglect, the county child welfare agency oversees the case, dependency counsel represents the child, and relatives, foster parents, or group homes care for the child while the court determines if the child will be returned to his or her family. Unfortunately, county social workers, dependency counsel, and courts often have too many cases to give each one the time and attention it requires, and because foster placements often change, many children are left without a constant adult in their life. In many cases, these children are served by volunteers who are appointed by the court. These trained and supervised volunteers, known as "court appointed special advocates" (CASAs), represent children and aid the court in better understanding their needs. CASAs also provide consistency for a dependent child as he or she moves through the system. CASAs can make a significant impact in the lives of abused or AB 424 (Beth Gaines) Page 2 of ? neglected children by fostering trusting relationships, working closely with various parties, and monitoring cases for the court. Because CASAs usually advocate on behalf of only one or two children at a time, they build relationships with each child by spending time with them and gathering facts about their life so they can report back to the judge, who is then able to make better decisions as to what is best for the child. Developing a strong, mentoring relationship with a CASA is particularly important for foster youth who are statistically far more likely than the general population to become involved with the criminal justice system. These youths are "three times more likely to be arrested, convicted, and imprisoned as adults compared to those who were allowed to remain at home. This indicates that, after controlling for abuse severity, foster care experience has some additional impact on future criminality beyond the effects of abuse and neglect?. For children and juveniles in out-of-home placements, experiences of abuse and neglect are often compounded by other negative experiences and factors?. The extensive needs of children who are placed in foster care often go unmet, increasing the likelihood that youth will engage in future delinquent behavior." (Erin McLaughlin, Dual-System Youth: The Need for Systems Integration to Improve Outcomes for Foster Youth Who Commit Delinquent Acts 16-17 (2009).) Research further shows that youth who have contact with both the dependency and delinquency systems, typically because of illegal activity or "status offenses" while in foster care, are the state's "most vulnerable youth," in part because of the likelihood that these children will experience mental health and substance abuse problems. (Nell Bernstein, Cal. State Library, Helping Those Who Need it Most: Meeting the Mental Health Care Needs of Youth in the Foster Care and Juvenile Justice Systems 3 (2005), available at http://www.library.ca. gov/crb/cafis/reports/05-01/05-01.pdf [as of May, 27, 2015].) To ensure that courts have the authority to appoint CASAs for all children in the juvenile system, this bill would expressly authorize courts to appoint a CASA in a delinquency proceeding. This bill would make additional clarifying and technical changes to the CASA program, including ensuring that CASAs have the authority to access the case file of any dependent or delinquent child they represent. AB 424 (Beth Gaines) Page 3 of ? CHANGES TO EXISTING LAW 1.Existing law provides that the juvenile court has jurisdiction over a child who is subject to abuse or neglect. (Welf. & Inst. Code Sec. 300.) Existing law provides that the juvenile court has jurisdiction over a child who persistently or habitually refuses to obey the reasonable and proper orders or directions of his or her parents or guardian, or who violated any local curfew ordinance for minors. (Welf. & Inst. Code Sec. 601.) Existing law requires, if a child is both a dependent and a delinquent, the probation department and child welfare services department to determine which status will best serve the interests of the child and the protection of society, and authorizes the probation department and the child welfare services department in any county, in consultation with the presiding juvenile court judge, to create a dual status protocol which would permit a minor who meets specified criteria to be designated simultaneously as both a dependent child and a ward of the juvenile court. (Welf. & Inst. Code Sec. 241.1.) Existing Rule of Court defines a CASA as a volunteer who has been recruited, screened, selected, trained, is being supervised and supported by a local CASA program, and who has been appointed by the juvenile court as a sworn officer of the court to help define the best interest of a child or children in juvenile court dependency and wardship proceedings. (Cal. Rule of Court Sec. 5.655(b).) Existing law allows a judge in a dependency proceeding to appoint a CASA for a minor or nonminor dependent, and requires each CASA to provide the court with independent, factual information about the child or nonminor dependent, and represent the best interests of the children involved. (Welf. & Inst. Code Sec. 102.) Existing law requires a CASA to report the results of any investigation to the court, and requires that otherwise confidential information reviewed by a CASA during the course of his or her duties remains confidential. (Welf. & Inst. Code Secs. 104, 105.) AB 424 (Beth Gaines) Page 4 of ? Existing law provides that the above provisions do not permit a CASA to participate in a criminal proceeding or in a proceeding to declare a person a ward of the juvenile court. (Welf. & Inst. Code Sec. 109.) This bill would provide that a CASA may be appointed on behalf of a ward who is subject to juvenile court jurisdiction. This bill would provide 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. 2.Existing law requires the judge making an appointment of a CASA to sign an order, which may grant the CASA the authority to review specific relevant documents and interview parties involved in the case to the same extent as any other officer of the court appointed to investigate proceedings on behalf of the court. (Welf. & Inst. Code Sec. 103.) Existing law grants access to juvenile case files to specified individuals and officials, including the child's parent or guardian, attorneys for the parties, court and state personnel, including law enforcement and child protective services, and school district officials, and prohibits any party authorized to inspect a juvenile court case file from disseminating the file or its contents unless otherwise permitted. (Welf. & Inst. Code Sec. 827(a).) This bill would provide that a CASA is considered "court personnel" for purposes of access to court records, as provided. This bill would make other clarifying and technical changes. COMMENT 1.Stated need for the bill According to the author: While existing law does not expressly prohibit the appointment of a CASA in delinquency proceedings, there are serious questions raised as to the legality of these appointments, and further the liability imposed on both the court and CASAs. AB 424 (Beth Gaines) Page 5 of ? This bill will remedy that issue [and] expressly authorize a judge to appoint a CASA to any dependent, non-minor dependent, or ward who is subject to the jurisdiction of the juvenile court. 2.Provides express authorization for the appointment of CASAs in delinquency proceedings Current law expressly provides that a CASA may be appointed in juvenile dependency proceedings, including proceedings involving a nonminor dependent. Whether a CASA may be appointed for a ward (i.e., a child in the delinquency system) is less clear because the statutory language merely describes what the code does not authorize. Specifically, existing law provides that nothing in the relevant code sections permit a CASA to participate in a criminal proceeding or in a proceeding to declare a person a ward of the juvenile court. (Welf. & Inst. Code Sec. 109.) However, many courts appoint CASAs in delinquency proceedings. In fact, the Rules of Court provide that CASAs are appointed to "help define the best interest of a child or children in juvenile court dependency and wardship proceedings." (Cal. Rule of Court Sec. 5.655(b).) The Judges of the El Dorado Superior Court, sponsor of this bill, argue that like foster children, wards benefit from the appointment of a CASA, but that many judges are reluctant to appoint them in delinquency proceedings because the statute does not expressly authorize such action: The appointment of a CASA can be critical to achieving the best possible result in a child's case. Many times the adult appointed to advocate for the child is the only stable adult in the child's life. Volunteers interact with the child differently than CPS social workers and probation officers. The attorneys in the case have many other responsibilities, and are generally unable to develop the type of personal connection that a CASA has with the child. This relationship provides the child with a positive adult role model. The interaction between the child and the advocate helps form the basis of the reports that are provided to the court before decisions are made that affect the future of the child. Staff notes that while this bill would clarify that CASAs may be appointed for wards, it would also limit their participation in the initial adjudication of delinquency. This would ensure that CASAs are not used to investigate a ward's alleged crime, which AB 424 (Beth Gaines) Page 6 of ? is the role of law enforcement. Instead, in delinquency cases CASAs would be used to communicate with and find out what is best for the youth, and to advocate on the youth's behalf. 3.Would allow a CASA to participate in dual-status proceedings and delinquency proceedings for cross-over youth Prior to 2005, all California counties exercised "exclusive jurisdiction" over youth in the child welfare system, meaning a child could only receive services from either the dependency or delinquency system. Thus, in cases where the court terminated dependency jurisdiction after the child violated the law, the child lost child welfare benefits, such as drug rehabilitation services, mental health counseling, and court-appointed parental supervision, in exchange for probation. (Jessica Springer, Orange County's Answer to the Dual Jurisdictional Dilemma, November 2014, 56 Orange County Lawyer 30.) Recognizing the needs of this particular population, the Legislature passed AB 129 (Cohn, Chapter 468, Statutes of 2004) which gave counties the discretion to exercise either dual or exclusive jurisdiction over crossover youths. Despite this authority, only nine counties have adopted protocols in response to AB 129 and thus, most still operate under an exclusive jurisdiction system. This bill would allow a CASA who was assigned to a foster child to continue a relationship with a child who crosses over into the delinquency system whether or not the particular county exercises exclusive or dual jurisdiction. This will ensure that these youths have at least one familiar adult able to advocate for his or her best interest. In support, the Juvenile Judges of California write "Most judges find that the appointment of a CASA is beneficial because the CASA is in many cases the only, or one of a very few, trust-based and ongoing relationships that a youth may have. As a result of those relationships, the court may be better able to learn the particular facts and circumstances and to better respond to a youth's individual needs." 4.Giving CASAs access to juvenile records Existing law grants access to juvenile case files only to a handful of specified individuals and officials, including the child's parent or guardian, attorneys for the parties, and court personnel, and prohibits any party from disseminating the file or its contents unless otherwise permitted. When a judge AB 424 (Beth Gaines) Page 7 of ? appoints a CASA in a juvenile case, existing law requires the judge to sign an order, which may grant the CASA the authority to review specific relevant documents and interview parties involved in the case to the same extent as any other officer of the court appointed to investigate proceedings on behalf of the court. (Welf. & Inst. Code Sec. 103.) This bill would instead provide that a CASA is considered "court personnel" for purposes of access to a youth's case file, thereby ensuring that CASAs have access to information necessary to advocate on a child's behalf. Additionally, this provision would hold a CASA to the same standards of confidentiality applicable to all other parties that have access to a juvenile's case file. Staff notes that because the court is required to make an order granting the CASA some level of access to a youth's case file, CASAs generally have access to this information under current law. Support : Juvenile Court Judges of California Opposition : None Known HISTORY Source : The Judges of the El Dorado Superior Court Related Pending Legislation : None Known Prior Legislation : None Known Prior Vote : Assembly Floor (Ayes 78, Noes 0) Assembly Appropriations Committee (Ayes 16, Noes 0) Assembly Judiciary Committee (Ayes 10, Noes 0) ************** AB 424 (Beth Gaines) Page 8 of ?