How much responsibility should a parent accept for the actions of an unruly child?
Can an abused child be placed with relatives, even though they have a pit bull in the house, or must he go to strangers?
How many times can a teen on probation fail a drug test before the probation is revoked?
Floyd County Juvenile Court Judge Tim Pape can tailor some of his rulings to the situation — if he’s willing to go out on a limb. But for state courts, agencies and officials, the Georgia Juvenile Code often ties their hands.
“Sometimes they can’t make the right decision for fear of reprisal from the state itself, for fear of their liability,” Pape said Thursday.
The judge was among the score of area court officers, teachers and social workers who attended a brainstorming session hosted by JUSTGeorgia at The Forum. The statewide coalition of child advocacy groups is working on a legislative proposal for the 2009 Georgia General Assembly session.
“Our goal is to obtain better child protection, health and education services for children, and we think the best way to do that is to revise the juvenile justice code,” said Leslie Gresham, JUSTGeorgia project manager for Georgia Appleseed.
Plans are to hold meetings in each of the state’s 10 judicial districts. Comments from the participants will be melded with a model code being developed by the Young Lawyers Division of the Georgia Bar Association.
“We want to take this to the key constituents, the people involved in the system on a daily basis,” said Marc Merton of Voices for Georgia’s Children, another lead partner in the initiative.
Frustration with the system was evident in the Thursday round-table discussion, but so was a desire to help bring about an effective change. “We all have the best interest of the children at heart,” said a case manager for the Polk County Department of Family and Children Services.
Two focus groups conducted earlier by the Young Lawyers committee cited five major problems with the 1971 code: it’s structurally disorganized, lacks clarity, is difficult to apply consistently, fails to provide adequate constitutional protections for youth and sometimes conflicts with federal law.
Locals added other complaints ranging from processing delays to a lack of follow-up and individual attention that could resolve or head off problems. Funding for the needed staff, equipment and services, however, is likely to remain an issue.
“That’s when the kids fall through the cracks,” a Floyd County teacher said.
Merton said a draft of the proposed legislation is scheduled to be unveiled in the spring and supporters will start seeking sponsors for the package.
