WHEN THE COST IS TOO GREAT: THE EMOTIONAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL IMPACT ON CHILDREN OF INCARCERATING THEIR PARENTS FOR DRUG OFFENCES1

The advent of the modern “war on drugs” and its accompanying “lock 'em up and throw away the key” crime policies largely explain the evolution of mass incarceration in the U.S. and account for much of the emotional and psychological pain caused to children who have lost their parents to long prison sentences. It is by reducing reliance on incarceration to tackle the “drug problem” in the United States that there will be a positive impact on reducing the number of parents being separated from their children for inordinate amounts of time, thereby potentially reducing the negative emotional and psychological impact on children. Aiding parents combat their addiction outside of prison walls is perhaps to most sensible criminal justice policy in addressing the needs of children who are caught in the cross‐fire of the war on drugs. In the meantime, as policy makers review, assess, and, eventually, reform draconian drug laws and sentencing policies, it is imperative that front‐line service providers who work with children and family and juvenile court judges be mindful of the emotional and psychological impact that parental incarceration has on youth. A more in‐depth understanding of the complexities of these young people's life experiences will hopefully enable the development of appropriate support services.     

THE COLLATERAL CONSEQUENCES OF INCARCERATION REVISITED: A QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE EFFECTS ON CAREGIVERS OF CHILDREN OF INCARCERATED PARENTS*

While policy makers have long extolled the benefits of incarceration, criminologists have expended considerable effort demonstrating the harmful collateral consequences of incarceration. Sampson (2011) recently challenged researchers to move beyond this dichotomy and to assess the “social ledger” of incarceration, where both the potential benefits and harms associated with incarceration are examined. To shed light on the variation in the collateral consequences of incarceration, we focus on the experiences of a valuable group of individuals directly impacted by imprisonment: those caring for children of incarcerated parents. Drawing from in‐depth interviews with a diverse group of caregivers (N= 100), we examine the various consequences (both positive and negative) that occur in their lives as a result of incarceration, as well as the causal processes responsible for the outcomes we observe. Our findings reveal marked variation in the effects of incarceration on caregivers. Such effects are shaped by (1) the prisoner's prior parental involvement, (2) the interpersonal relationship between caregiver and prisoner, and (3) the caregiver's family support system. These findings have important implications for future work conducted on the collateral consequences of incarceration for caregivers, children, and families.     

SPECIAL ISSUE: MAKING A BETTER WORLD FOR CHILDREN OF INCARCERATED PARENTS

The punitive sentencing regime that has branded the United States as the Country incarcerating the largest number of its inhabitants has also imposed a terrible punishment on the children of incarcerated parents. These youth are at risk, not only for continuing an intergenerational cycle of crime, but also for entering the pipeline that extends from foster care, to school failure, homelessness, unemployability, poverty, and institutionalization. Even those who escape the more draconian collateral consequences of their parents' incarceration face stigma and shame that may affect their development. This special issue of the Family Court Review explores a myriad of issues that impact Children of Incarcerated Parents, and suggests a variety of approaches, practices and policies that will better the lives of children who should not suffer for the “sins” of their fathers and mothers. This Introduction highlights many issues that affect the children of incarcerated parents, summarizes the valuable contributions of the authors, and also identifies publications and research sources that delve more deeply into these topics.     

THE IMPACT OF SENTENCING GUIDELINES ON JAIL INCARCERATION IN MINNESOTA*

Although available empirical evidence suggests that Minnesota's Determinate Sentencing Law has had little effect on prison incarceration, it is still uncertain whether the sentencing guidelines affected jail use. A few recent studies imply that the guidelines have had a positive effect on jail incarceration rates. Accounts have pointed to preexisting trends, more severe sanctioning of repeat property offenders, and judicial concern with prison overcrowding as possible underlying causes of this observed increase. Using longitudinal data and an ARIMA study design, we investigate the validity of these competing explanations. Our findings show that the onset of the sentencing guidelines increased judicial use of the jail sanction beyond the effect of preexisting trends. In addition, the effect of mitigated dispositional departures from the no prison/prison outcome on jail use is salient only when prison population levels are high. This latter finding supports the thesis that judicial concern with prison overcrowding motivated judges to circumvent the guidelines in order to shift the burden of incarcerating offenders from the state to the local level. The policy implications of these results for determinate sentencing reform are discussed.     

NIPPING IT IN THE BUD®: ADOPTING A FAMILY DRUG COURT APPROACH TO FIGHTING THE CYCLE OF ALCOHOL ADDICTION FOR CHILDREN WHEN PARENTS ARE CONVICTED OF DUI

Many states have implemented Drug Courts in recent years by combining drug and alcohol treatment with ongoing judicial supervision. Through the use of incentives such as reduced and dismissed charges and fines combined with supervised treatment, Drug Courts have been shown to be very effective in helping to break the cycle of addiction, crime, and repeat incarceration for those involved. However, these courts do little to address situations in which the addict is the custodial parent of a minor child, who is exponentially more at‐risk for future alcohol addiction simply by being the child of an alcoholic, due to both environmental and biological factors. Thus, while the parent's addiction is theoretically being addressed by the courts, little is being done, absent a showing of abuse or neglect, by the judicial system to combat the seeds of addiction that have already been planted in these children. Therefore, this Note advocates for states to include an alcohol education and counseling program aimed at children of alcohol‐related offenders based on the Drug Court Model. Participation in this program would then act as a mitigating factor for the addicted offender when receiving their final sentence. This proposed program would then serve as a model for other states to adopt in the near future.     

FINDING THE BALANCE: ETHICAL CHALLENGES AND BEST PRACTICES FOR LAWYERS REPRESENTING PARENTS WHEN THE INTERESTS OF CHILDREN ARE AT STAKE

This article explores ethical and practical issues facing attorneys in representing parents in a contested custody matter. The article traces the history of the way this matter has been handled historically and presents the latest thinking reflected by the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers in their most recent publication of ethical guidelines for attorneys. The article also presents perspectives from several jurisdictions including Australia and Oregon.     

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.     

STUDY ON THE CHALLENGES AND PROTECTION OF THE RIGHT OF CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES TO REHABILITATION IN CHINA

Obtaining effective rehabilitation and gaining access to full development services are fundamental for children with disabilities to fully participate in society and achieve social inclusion. A disabled child’s right to rehabilitation is specially protected by law in China and internationally. Chinese law specifically provides that the State shall ensure the enjoyment of the right of children with disabilities to rehabilitation services. This study shows that in the last five years, the rehabilitation services for children with disabilities are generally improved. But due to the incomplete protection mechanism, the right of children with disabilities to rehabilitation still could not be fully realized. This article concludes that the rehabilitation situation of children with disabilities in China presents the general feature of lacking of opportunities and structural imbalance. The Chinese government should take more responsibility to improve the rehabilitation system for children with disabilities. Specifically, the Chinese government should undertake the obligations as stated in the Convention on the Rights of the Child and Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities to provide rehabilitation services for all children with disabilities. To ensure the effective implementation of the right of children with different disabilities in different areas, China shall improve the rehabilitation legal system, establish an urban-rural integral rehabilitation system, enlarge financial invest and increase professional level of rehabilitation staff.