A Lancaster County Juvenile Court case that involved three kids taken from an unsanitary house in 2005 concluded nearly three years later with their adoption by Jeff and Lisa Elrod. Lancaster County
CLARENCE MABIN / Lincoln Journal Star | Posted: Saturday, July 26, 2008 7:00 pm
A Lancaster County Juvenile Court case that involved three kids taken from an unsanitary house in 2005 concluded nearly three years later with their adoption by Jeff and Lisa Elrod.
Lancaster County prosecutors filed the initial abuse and neglect petition against the children’s natural mother in August 2005, two years before the juvenile court added a fourth judge.
A number of circumstances had a role in the case’s longevity: among them, the complexity of abuse and neglect petitions in general, the court’s interest in protecting the rights of the natural parents and the succession of five caseworkers assigned to the case.
Heavy caseloads of the three juvenile court judges at the time also might have played a part.
“We were in dire straits for years,” said Lincoln attorney Jon Braaten. “The fourth judge has made a difference.”
Nebraska Gov. Dave Heineman appointed then-deputy Lancaster County Public Defender Reggie Ryder to the juvenile court bench in August. He joined Lancaster County Juvenile Court judges Roger Heideman, appointed in 2006, and Toni Thorson and Linda Porter.
Braaten is among several professionals who work closely with the court that said cases are progressing more quickly since Ryder’s appointment.
One indication, he said, are more open judges’ calendars.
“If we want to do something on (parental) visitation, we can get into court in two to four weeks, as opposed to three months,” he said.
By state law, Braaten said, juvenile courts must review abuse and neglect petitions at least every six months.
“Before (Ryder) it was four or five months,” he said. “Now, we’re doing them every three months. … I believe that cases are going through 25 percent to 30 percent quicker.”
Dawn Rockey, executive director of Court Appointed Special Advocates, or CASA, has also noticed a change.
“I think the judges are not as overwhelmed,” she said.
CASA volunteers represent the interests of children at the center of abuse and neglect court cases.
Rockey said the new court is referring cases to CASA sooner after the initial filing of a petition than did the three-judge court.
“I think it’s because they’re (judges) not as rushed,” she said. “They have more time to look at cases with a (fresh) set of eyes.”
Ryder’s appointment came on the heels of a recommendation from the Nebraska Judicial Resources Commission that the Legislature approve a new judgeship for the judicial district.
Porter and Thorson appeared before the Commission in December 2006, urging its members to make the recommendation.
A judicial workload study completed earlier that month indicated the court was only slightly understaffed. According to the study, the district had a judicial demand of 3.09 positions.
The study considered the number of judges in a judicial district and the demands on their time, measured in part by the type of cases, weighted for complexity, that they handle each year.
At the hearing, Porter questioned whether the study, which looked at caseloads during a period in 2005, also considered cases from the previous year, but that were still pending in 2005.
Juvenile court cases, she said, often take longer to resolve than cases before a county or district judge.
“How many cases you’re counting (is my issue)” she said.
In an interview earlier this year, the judge said she and her colleagues got “a little breathing room” with Ryder’s addition last year. She said she can now set aside one half-day a week for getting caught up with her orders and reading case law.
The additional time could also lead to quicker turnaround on abuse and neglect cases, which, Porter said, consumes at least half of her time.
For children placed outside their homes while the cases work their way through court, quicker resolutions can be crucial, she said.
Strong emotional attachments can form between children and foster parents, she said.
“If the placement is with a relative, that’s no problem,” she said. “But if it’s foster care, that can be a problem for the child.”
Reach Clarence Mabin at 473-7234 or cmabin@journalstar.com.