RESULTS OF A SURVEY OF COURT-CONNECTED PARENT EDUCATION PROGRAMS IN U.S. COUNTIES

This article highlights the results of a survey of 3,073 U.S. counties regarding court-connected programs for divorcing parents. Court-connected programs were identified in 541 counties. Information is provided on states' efforts at parent education for divorcing parents, including proliferation of programs, commonly used programs, court involvement in organization of programs, fees, and various attendance policies, including mandated attendance. The research establishes a base of information that reflects current practices, informs future research on program outcomes, and assists court systems to implement, change, and/or mandate education programs for divorcing parents.     

A REVIEW OF ONLINE DIVORCE EDUCATION PROGRAMS

Divorce education programs first surfaced over four decades ago. Today, many states mandate parents to participate in a divorce education program before their dissolution can be finalized. Changes in the technological landscape have allowed innovative practitioners to create online divorce education programs, yet these programs have not been formally evaluated for quality. Adapting a research design for evaluating face‐to‐face programs, we created an online divorce education review form and reviewed online divorce education programs that parents use to meet court‐mandated requirements. Results reveal that online programs have significant potential to help divorcing parents, yet there are areas of online program content and instructional strategies that can be improved. Program content that includes legal and court focused topics or modules, or that offer advice for families facing special circumstances such as domestic violence, could be enhanced. Additionally, most of the instructional strategies were passive. With this research, recommendations were made for improving program content and instructional strategies for online divorce education programs.     

PROSPECTS FOR EXPANDED PARENT EDUCATION SERVICES FOR DIVORCING FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN

The factors influencing court readiness to implement programs for divorcing families that are evidence based (i.e., have received support as being effective in scientific trials) were examined in a stratified random sample of the 3, 140 U.S. counties. Represented in the final survey were 22 large, 58 medium-sized, and 74 small counties with established divorcing parent education programs. For each court, a telephone interview was conducted with a key informant. Results indicate that 95% of counties report that implementing a lengthier, empirically validated program would be helpful to families, would find support from judges (80%), should be done in their county (74%), would find funding (73%), and was the responsibility of the court (69%). The two important barries to implementing longer evidence-based programs are potential funding problems and parents' potentially low attendance.     

Evaluating the effectiveness of a court sponsored abuser treatment program

The literature on abuser treatment programs reveals the following problems: (1) the dominance of shelter-related abuser programs, (2) little understanding of the effectiveness of such programs, and (3) low recruitment and high attrition rates in shelter-related programs. This study attempts to deal with some of these difficulties by an evaluation of a court mandated abuser treatment program. The sample used in this study includes a treatment group of 120 court-referred abusers and a control group of 101 nonreferred abusers. The research was designed to deal with problems such as differential participation in the treatment sessions and self-selection bias. Results indicated that the relationship between treatment attendance and recidivism was not linear. Only those defendants who attended 75% of the treatment sessions or more have decreased recidivism; others showed no impact. Some policy implications are also discussed.     

Diversion in the Canadian Juvenile Justice System: A Tale of Two Cities

Abstract The present study attempted to evaluate the effectiveness of diversion in the juvenile justice system by comparing two different communities. One community has a formalized, well-established diversion program whereas the other community utilizes the Family Court to a much greater extent. Preliminary data suggests no difference in recidivism for a matched sample of young offenders. The implications of the study are discussed in terms of future research on diversion and the need for appropriate comparison groups. In the past two decades, diversion programs have been one of the major innovations within the juvenile justice system. These programs have attempted to divert juveniles from the formal process involving court hearings by creating alternative interventions at the policy and community level. The basic premises underlying these programs is that the formal court system may do more harm than good by labeling youngsters as “delinquent” and rendering them more vulnerable by involvement in an adversary process (Reference numbers 4, 12, 14). Diversion programs that provide youngsters with an opportunity to make restitution or perform community services are compensation for their misbehavior are seen as more immediate and meaningful consequences than awaiting a formal adversarial court hearing (5, 13). However, diversion programs have not met with universal acceptance. Critics have pointed out that programs, in fact, “widen the justice net” by processing children who never would have gone to court anyway (3, 7). As well, concerns have been raised as to the protection of clients' legal rights in the diversion program and the dangers of “double jeopardy” in the event that failure in a program could lead to an even more severe disposition by the court (8, 9). The debate over the effectiveness of diversion programs has been fueled by the lack of research. Although there are many studies that suggest the success of this approach (1, 6, 10), the research has suffered in its credibility due to the absence of appropriate control groups. The present study attempted to fill this significant void in previous evaluations of diversion, by comparing two communities in southwestern Ontario with different approaches to juvenile justice. The cities of Windsor and London are approximately 200 km apart, with comparative populations (200,000 vs 250,000). Windsor has well established diversion programs with substantial support of community agencies, the police force and Crown Attorney's office. This program is described in detail elsewhere (2, 11) so will not be outlined here. London has no such program and consequently has an obviously greater number of youngsters handled through the formalized juvenile court. The authors hoped to capitalize on this “naturally occurring difference” in approach between the two cities by examining the rate of recidivism of young offenders as well as determine their attitudes (and that of their parents) toward the interventions they received. The hypotheses in the pilot studies outlined were that the diversion program youth in Windsor would have a more positive attitude about their intervention and would be less likely to recidivate than a matched sample of youth in London, based on the theoretical underpinning of diversion as well as the results of previous outcome studies.     

STATUS OF COURT-CONNECTED PROGRAMS FOR CHILDREN WHOSE PARENTS ARE SEPARATING OR DIVORCING

This article reports on programs for children whose parents are divorcing or separating. Data were obtained from 67 courts and 81 program providers across the United States. Most court systems with children's programs used community providers and encouraged rather than required children's attendance. The average program consisted of one or two sessions, with a length of 4 to 5 1/2 hours. A partial list of commercially available curricula is provided in the appendix.     

EFFECTS OF SKILL-BASED VERSUS INFORMATION-BASED DIVORCE EDUCATION PROGRAMS ON DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND PARENTAL COMMUNICATION

This study used a pre- and postevaluation with a control group to compare the effectiveness of two divorce education programs: skill-based Children in the Middle (CIM) and informationbased Children First in Divorce (CFD). Each treatment group consisted of approximately 125 divorcing parents mandated to attend divorce education in Florida. The control group consisted of 64 divorcing parents not mandated to attend divorce education in Alabama for lack of a program. Treatment and control parents lived in comparable cities with comparable demographics. Results indicate that CIM, not CFD, improved parental communication. Both CIM and CFD reduced child exposure to parental conflict. Neither program had effects on domestic violence, actual parental conflict, or child behavior problems. Across all groups, parents with greater divorce knowledge and communication skills experienced more reciprocal discussions with the other parent, less parental conflict, less domestic violence, and they exposed children to less conflict.     

A Rigorous Quasi‐Experimental Design to Evaluate the Causal Effect of a Mandatory Divorce Education Program

All couples with minor children who filed for divorce within a specific 6‐week period (N = 191 couples) in one jurisdiction were ordered to attend a divorce education program. The control group included about 20 couples randomly selected from each of six 6‐week intervals before and six 6‐week intervals after the treatment interval (N = 243 couples). Archival records were searched for variables such as legal and residential custody award, visitation percentage, and relitigation. The impact of the program was assessed by evaluating, for each variable, whether the data for program interval departed from the straight (regression) line drawn through all the control group intervals. Only the visitation time award significantly differed: 27.75% for treatment couples and 22.46% for control couples. Analyses show that the father's attendance at the program primarily accounts for the difference.

Key Points for the Family Court Community
• There are considerable methodological weaknesses in most of the existing evaluations of divorcing parent education programs.
• Stronger, more scientifically rigorous—and thus persuasive—designs are possible in court settings, such as the regression discontinuity quasi‐experimental design we feature here.
• Archival records, such as various court filings, are a rich and relatively untapped source of data.
• Being mandated to attend a single 2‐hour divorcing parent education class caused an increase in the visitation time award in divorce decrees.
• There is a disconnect between being mandated by a judge to attend a program and actual attendance.

     

Chapter 2: Pay Now So You Won't Pay Later: The Effectiveness of Prevention Programming in the Fight to Reduce Delinquency

Community-based delinquency prevention programs, designed to work with youth and families before they become involved with the official court process, are relatively rare. Likewise, few studies have been published concerninge valuative research on such programs. This article reviews some background on program concepts, describes the operations of the Oakland County Probate Court Youth Assistance casework services program, and reports the results of a comprehensive program evaluation project. The findings suggest that prevention programming is one effective strategy to aid in reducing the likelihood of more costly court interventions. Recommendations for program development are offered.     

Assessing the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency: An Evaluation of a Court‐Based Delinquency Prevention Program

In 2002, the State of Ohio mandated juvenile courts to provide prevention for at‐risk youth. This study examined official court records to evaluate the effectiveness of a prevention program administered by the Greene County Juvenile Court. A sample of 362 youth referred to the program for the years 2002 to 2009 by concerned caretakers, teachers, and police was analyzed. Consistent with intake goals, 81.7% of clients were referred for at‐risk but not actually delinquent behaviors. Completion of the prevention program did not predict future court referrals, but neither did seriousness of referral behavior. Children with two biological parents were significantly more likely to complete the program, whereas referrals to Strengthening Families Program and substance abuse screening significantly predicted program noncompletion. Implications for policy and research are discussed.

Key Points for the Family Court Community:
• This article highlights efforts by county juvenile court to implement a secondary prevention program for at‐risk but not officially court‐referred youth.
• Delinquency prevention research depends on good juvenile court data and adequate comparison groups.
• Evidence‐based predelinquent interventions with external process and outcome evaluations should be the standard.

     

EXAMINATION OF THE IMPACT OF INCREASED COURT REVIEW ON PERMANENCY OUTCOMES FOR ABUSED AND NEGLECTED CHILDREN

This article provides a brief history of a federally funded court improvement program, describes the Dane County Court Improvement Project, and discusses the implications of the project evaluation's findings. As part of Wisconsin's efforts under the federally funded state court improvement program, Dane County developed and evaluated a form of accelerated review of selected juvenile court cases. The accelerated review intended to expedite permanency outcomes for abused and neglected children in out-of-home care. The evaluation's findings of the initiative suggest that more frequent court reviews than those mandated by law may increase the likelihood of adopting children entering out-of-home care with no decrease in the likelihood of family reunification. However, because many of the children whose parental rights had been terminated had yet to be placed for adoption at the time of the study's conclusion, the encouraging early findings of the initiative should be regarded with some caution.     

Outcomes of civil protective orders: results from one state

This study compares final sentencing decisions ordered by judges to federal and state sentencing guidelines for protective order violations. The authors reviewed violations that were pled before the largest district court in Utah and found that in the majority of cases, defendants were not sentenced in accordance with federal and state guidelines. Although state guidelines mandate defendants who violate a protective order to attend a batterer intervention program, less than one fourth of defendants were sentenced to attend such programs. Fewer than half of the defendants were arrested and incarcerated, as opposed to the 100% mandated by state sentencing guidelines. Federal guidelines mandate that all defendants be ordered to surrender firearms, but only six defendants were given that order. This study shows that the judicial system could be more aggressive in improving the safety of victims of intimate partner violence by using the full extent of the sentencing guidelines.     

Dealing with mentally ill domestic violence perpetrators: A therapeutic jurisprudence judicial model

People suffering from mental illness are increasingly referred to the domestic violence court. Yet the typical diversion programs available, including batterer's intervention programs, are inappropriate for those with serious mental illness. As a result, the Miami-Dade Domestic Violence Court has developed a new approach for dealing with this population that applies mental health court techniques in domestic violence court. This article will describe and discuss this pioneering model. It also will situate this model within the context of other problem-solving courts and discuss how the court uses principles and approaches of therapeutic jurisprudence. The paper presents some preliminary data that describe the social and legal characteristics of 20 defendants in the Domestic Violence Mental Health Court followed over a two year period between 2005 and 2007.     

Factors of Success: Drug Court Graduate Exit Interviews

Drug court judges enforce mandated treatment through a series of rewards and graduated sanctions as compliance with mandated treatment and retention are crucial to successful graduation for participants. A study of 600 graduates from drug court details self-report data of motivations and perceptions offenders shared about their experience in drug court. Clients rated different factors related to their entry into, retention in, and graduation from drug court. Upon graduation, clients rated the opportunity to avoid jail as a key factor in their decision to enter drug court and positive improvements in their life as significant in their decision to remain. This research provides important information on the drug court experience from those clients who successfully graduated.     

Drug treatment court opens in British Columbia

British Columbia has launched its first drug treatment court. Designed as a mandated addiction treatment alternative to incarceration, the court will attempt to steer drug users charged with drug-related offences away from jail and into rigorous supervised addiction treatment. While some have applauded this recent development, local experts have criticized the move, citing the lack of evidence supporting the efficacy of drug courts and the need for more voluntary treatment programs.     

The application of social impact assessment to the study of criminal and juvenile justice programs: A case study

This article focuses on the utility of social impact assessment as a method for the study of criminal and juvenile justice programs. Social impact assessment is a relatively new research approach which has most often been used not in the field of criminal and juvenile justice, but to predict the many possible impacts of public construction programs on individuals, organizations, and the community. To illustrate the method of social impact assessment, a case study of one of the few applications of social impact assessment in a juvenile or criminal justice setting is provided. The case study is of a nationally acclaimed program model, the Community Arbitration Project (CAP), which was designed to improve the screening of juvenile delinquency cases before court. The case study compares CAP with a traditional screening program. It shows the procedure used to identify many types of possible impacts that may differ between the two programs, including those which are desired and not desired, and those which are intended and unintended. Furthermore, the case study demonstrates the process used to document selected impacts throughout the social system, in the case of CAP and traditional screening, on offenders, victims, police, the juvenile court, and the local community. The article concludes with a discussion of the feasibility of using the results of a social impact assessment as input into the modification of innovative model programs during their formative stage, and as input into the decision making that leads up to the choice of a model program for replication.     

AN EVALUATION OF CHILD PROTECTION MEDIATION IN FIVE CALIFORNIA COURTS

This article presents the results of an evaluation of five California counties utilizing court-based mediation services to process child maltreatment cases filed with the court. The programs employed a variety of different service delivery approaches and targeted cases at a variety of different stages of case processing. The results indicate that mediation is an effective method of resolving cases and may offer a number of benefits over adjudication, including more detailed treatment plans and fewer contested court hearings.     

PARENT EDUCATION PROGRAMS IN FAMILY COURTS: BALANCING AUTONOMY AND STATE INTERVENTION

This work considers how court‐connected parent education programs can assist parents to access dispute resolution processes that best suit their families’ needs, in a manner involving appropriately curtailed levels of state interference with parental autonomy. After reviewing traditionally accepted limits on state interference with family functioning, the increased concern for children's emotional well‐being, and data relating to one parent education program, the author concludes that providing mandatory “basic level” informational programs to all separating parents seeking access to the family law regime is a warranted level of state intervention. “Skills‐building” programs aimed at achieving demonstrably changed parental practices should be available on a voluntary attendance basis.     

On the “Economic Dilemma” within the Performing Arts

This article contributes to our understanding public art at the local level by providing analysis of local government public art programs. A survey was conducted with cities and towns in Arizona that have public art programs. The article begins by defining public art and explaining how government funding for public art began in the United States. Next, it highlights the benefits of public art. Public art program funding sources, budgets, maintenance, personnel, and promotion techniques are discussed for the cities/towns surveyed. Last, recommendations are provided for cities/towns seeking to create or expand their public art programs.     

LESSONS LEARNED FROM A CHILD PROTECTION MEDIATION PROGRAM: If At First You Succeed and Then You Don't…

This article discusses the U.A.L.R. child protection mediation program as well as several other child protection mediation programs in order to examine what makes a program a continuing success. Child protection mediation programs have gone through a period of tremendous progress and growth over the past 20 years in the United States and Canada. Numerous studies have shown that child protection mediation helps families and courts by lowering the amount of time that children spend in foster care and the amount of costs for courts and agencies. Child protection mediation is an essential tool for juvenile courts and the families that have cases there. This article addresses the development of child protection mediation programs, their importance to juvenile courts, and some reasons that these programs succeed or fail. Although many of these programs have early accomplishments, they have not always been able to maintain their growth or to continue to exist. The U.A.L.R. Mediation Project has not sustained its early levels of cases or referrals from court for numerous reasons. Using the techniques of other thriving programs, we will attempt to restart and re-energize the program. It has been established that the people who have a role in the establishment of a program, the funding sources and especially the commitment of the parties to the program all have a significant long-term impact. This article points out how programs should begin and proceed if they are to be a long-term success.