JUNE2002

What do you need to know if your child is arrested and is being held by the police or courts?

You want to become an informed consumer -- and quickly -- to ensure the best possible care and to advocate for the least restrictive options for your child. Since most juvenile justice systems neither know how nor are staffed to care for youth with special needs, you will have to take the lead in advocating for the needs of your child. If this is a first offense and one that is fairly minor, hopefully the jurisdiction in your area allows police officers to refer first offenders to special programs (like youth court, law-related education, or community service programs) rather than referring the youth to a juvenile court. Special programs are a way to handle the case informally. This route requires your child to be compliant. If s/he is not compliant, the case will be referred for formal handling in a courtroom before a judge.

If your child is referred to juvenile court and is going to be held overnight at the local detention center, the first thing I advise is to get an attorney, if you can afford one. The attorney can advocate for your child's case to be handled informally, if possible. An attorney can also try to get the case dismissed at the intake stage of the process or argue against the child being held in secure detention. (Your chances of successfully having your child's case be diverted out of the courts and into a special program are highest if you work with police and prosecutors at the point of arrest or during the early stages after arrest to try to make this happen.) Many families cannot afford personal attorneys and need the assistance of the court to appoint counsel for their child. Make sure a parent/legal guardian is present at the time of appointment and knows who has been appointed and how to reach that person. Teach your child to ask for you or an attorney to be present if s/he finds himself in a situation where s/he is being held by law enforcement.

It is important to know that in most jurisdictions, there are concrete time limits for how long a child can be held without going to court. They generally do not exceed 72 hours. Most require that a youth see a judge by the next day, unless it is a weekend or some crisis comes up. Know the limits for the jurisdiction you live in. Ask the defender service, the probation officer or department representative, or even the police to tell you what these time limits are. Ask if setting bail is a possibility for the juvenile. Although this exists in only a few states, your state may be one that offers bail as an option in juvenile court matters.

If your child must go to court, be sure to tell the child to be truthful with his/her attorney. Caution your child about answering questions regarding his/her case from anyone other than his/her attorney. Remind him/her to ask that the attorney be present before s/he answers any questions regarding the case, including questions posed by police officers. The child and the attorneys are usually the only ones allowed to speak in the courtroom, so it is important that parents tell the attorney everything s/he needs the attorney to know before the hearing begins. It is of utmost importance that parents attend all hearings. Occasionally, a judge will ask parents directly if they understand what is expected of them and their child.

If your child is placed in secure detention, s/he will be assigned a probation officer and, more than likely, a caseworker at the detention center. You should get the names and telephone numbers of both of these workers and their supervisors. Also, be sure to get a fact sheet on the operation of the detention center that tells you the rules and services, visitation opportunities, and how to handle your child's medication needs. Ensure that any special needs your child may have are identified immediately and addressed by the probation officer and/or caseworker. Be sure to ask who to follow up with and the best time of day to reach that person. Ask about telephone privileges, visitation rights, and other opportunities for parent involvement. Verify the next court date for your child and what is going to happen at the hearing. Again, be sure to attend your child's hearing.

If your child has been seeing a psychologist regularly, make sure the attorney, probation officer and caseworker know this. Give them the name and telephone number of the clinician, the frequency of visits, and the date of your child's last visit with the psychologist or psychiatrist. Ask your child's caseworker or probation officer how your child's mental health services can be continued while he or she is in detention. If you have a copy of an IEP for your child, make sure you have copies for the detention center school principal and the attorney assigned to your child. (These may be delivered by the probation officer.) If your child is going to be seen by a different psychologist, ask the facility to notify you so that you can notify his treating clinician to allow for the two clinicians can get in touch with each other when and if necessary.

If your child is adjudicated delinquent at the next hearing and sent to another facility, you will again need to get the names of the new caseworker and caseworker supervisor. The probation officer will probably remain the same, but this person also can change in some jurisdictions. Ask the probation officer to describe to you the plan that s/he is going to recommend at the disposition hearing. Talk to your child's attorney about that plan to assure the most appropriate placement for your child. Once the disposition hearing is held and the placement determined by the judge, your work begins again.

You will want to know who is in charge of the facility and how to reach that person by phone and mail. Ask what their intake procedures are so that you can help to allay your child's fears and concerns about the change of placement. You will want to make sure that your child's records have followed him/her, especially those related to any mental or behavioral health treatment and special education needs. It is also important that you know the rules and services of the new facility. You will have to ask for names, telephone numbers, program rules (school, after school, weekend), and visitation rules, and about opportunities for parent involvement at the new facilities. Each time there is a placement change, it is important that you initiate these contacts again to be sure you are an informed consumer and are prepared to advocate on behalf of your child. You now want to engage the probation officer in discussions about your child's aftercare or re-entry plan.

Keep in close contact with the facility case manager and the probation officer to stay abreast of your child's progress and to be involved from the beginning in any aftercare planning. There is significant focus on planning for a youth's release from any facility and you have a right to be involved in that planning. In many cases, you will have to initiate the contact to assure that you are involved in the planning. This is your opportunity to find out what is available in your community to connect your child to and to reduce the likelihood of another similar problem. This is time-consuming and sometime quite difficult, but it is worth it for the future of your child.