Saturday, March 3, 2012

My Day In Court


by Bruce Brady

I spent the day in Family Court yesterday. I wasn’t on trial. I was just observing. My wife and I are training to be Guardians ad Litem, advocates for children in court. It was hearing day and in the span of three hours, the judge heard and ruled on 16 cases, with another 12 to 16 to be heard after lunch.

As if working the drive-up window at a fast food restaurant, I watched one group of attorneys and defendants rush out while another group rushed in every 15 minutes. Expecting to see drawn, saddened, remorseful faces, I was disappointed to see most defendants were upset as if to say, “How dare you drag me away from my important life to sit here and listen to you tell me what I’m going to do!”

As the attorneys pleaded their cases and the judge decided what actions to take next, there was little to no mention of the children. My mind wandered to thoughts of how I might feel if I were yanked from the only home life I knew and shuttled off to some relative or to people I didn’t know at all. How would I deal with the uncertainty of never knowing if my parents would hug me or slug me? And I can’t even imagine the horror of being sexually molested by your father or a boyfriend numerous times before reaching the age of ten. Yet, these were the lives of the children who’d been removed from their homes by the state.

The official focus of the hearings was to decide the best courses of action to take with the abusive or neglectful parents, family members, boyfriends or girlfriends. It seemed little attention was paid to the fate of the children. They were seldom mentioned. And when they were, it was only to briefly describe the type of abuse or neglect they suffered.
 
Clearly, the children had no voice in court other than the Guardians ad Litem. And the Guardians are the only ones who don’t operate under the governmental pressure to get the cases closed and the children placed in the most cost-effective situations for the state. The Guardians, who are volunteers, are solely concerned with the best interest of the children and answer only to the judges.

Thankfully, most judges value the assessments of the Guardians and will adjust treatment and placement plans accordingly. So the Guardians do play an important role in the lives of the children and in helping the judges do what is best for them.

I learned many things by attending court. There’s a lot of selfishness out there. Most of us blame others or our circumstances for our bad behavior. And some people vent their frustrations by abusing children. Currently my county has less than 200 Guardians to handle over 1,000 children, and Guardians are limited to two cases at a time. If you have a heart for defenseless children, I encourage you to consider becoming a volunteer advocate in your county.

7 comments:

  1. Do you have a legal background? Do you need one to become a Guardian ad Litem? I have a paralegal degree. I, too, find that the courts don't always do what is best for the child. Can you send me any web sites to go to in order to become more enlightened in the process?

    desertrose5173 at gmail dot com

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    1. Hi Linda. You don't need any particular qualifications. You simply need to be willing to see a case through to the end, which could mean up to 2 years of follow-up visits amounting to about 10 hours a month. You can get more information at http://www.oepp.sc.gov/gal/ or by searching you state's web site for the Guardian ad Litem or Court Appointed Special Advocate program.

      Thanks for reading, and for caring.

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    2. Sorry. Been consumed by our first case and not checking the comments. No Linda, you don't need a legal background. The CASA or Guardian program has attorneys who represent them. Think of a Guardian as an investigator and the one who speaks on behalf of the child in court. If you're feeling led to do this, I would encourage you to go for it.

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  2. Wow. I didn't know the statistics were so bad in Greenville. I'll have to talk to you about what it takes to become a Guardian ad Litem. I don't have any idea what is involved and if it's something I could have enough time to do well right now, but I'm certainly willing to listen. Let's talk! It breaks my heart when I hear stories of abuse and neglect. I just don't understand, and I'm honestly not sure if my heart could take it.

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    1. Thanks Celeste. I'll be happy to discuss it with you. And thanks for your comments.

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  3. My mom is a guardian ad litem, and she has many happy stories (as well as some sad ones like Bruce described). Sometimes what needs to happen is that an unbiased, open mind can talk to the children, the parents, and the social worker and make a statement to the judge about what is in the child's best interest. When my mom writes a recommendation, the judge almost always accepts her recommendation as part or all of the plan for that child.
    I am so excited for ya'll... the heart of someone who loves kids, combined with a heart for Jesus. You can't go wrong, thanks Bruce and Candice!

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    1. Sorry Joanna for the late response. I appreciate your input and applaud your mom for what she does. As I'm sure you've heard from her, It is rewarding. Even when the court doesn't agree with you, you experience God's joy, if you've done all you could to cause the best outcome for the children. Thanks for you remarks.

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