As published by the Austin Monitor on Aug. 25, 2014 and picked up by KUT News.
Representatives of Travis County children and parents involved in legal abuse and neglect cases have only 10-minute judicial hearings to present evidence of their safety and living situations, according to county civil court judges. County attorneys for indigent children and parents say their caseloads are to the point that they must hire private attorneys to help represent those involved.
At a recent budget hearing, Judge Lora Livingston said the rise in caseloads places stress on the court systems, resulting in a “dire need” for more resources to serve this vulnerable population of children and their families.
Livingston, the administrative judge for Travis County’s district judges, requested $554,654 to hire an associate judge and four supporting court staff members to focus on the increasing Child Protective Services caseloads, to allow judges to spend more time on each case. However, the budget office did not recommend funding for Livingston’s request.
CPS caseworkers who investigate allegations of abuse and neglect petition to begin civil court action only after determining children are unsafe in their homes. Within 14 days after a case has been filed, a judge must determine the appropriate placement for the child, whether that be with another family member, a foster parent or a group home. Until parental rights are terminated, the child is under temporary managing conservatorship with the state, and court hearings are continued typically on a quarterly basis for the judge to determine if the child is appropriately cared for and if the parents have completed the necessary steps to take their child home.
State and federal law requires that the court reach a permanent resolution for the child’s safety within a 12 to 18 month period. If the children are unable to return to their parents and parents relinquish their rights to the children, they are placed under either permanent care of the state until they are adopted or age out of the system on their 18th birthday.
“We have to make some tough choices at the courthouse when we decide where they’re going to spend the night and with whom, and will they be safe,” Livingston said.
The National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges recommends that CPS hearings be allotted 30 to 60 minutes per case. However, in Travis County, judges hear up to seven cases per hour, averaging less than 9 minutes each.
“That, I would suggest to you, is just simply inadequate,” Livingston told commissioners. Read more on KUT's site.
The original article from the Austin Monitor is behind a paywall.