Archive

• Beyond the Bench Podcast, Season 2: Episode 4 — The Case Plan: In and Out of Court

  This entry was contributed by Sara DePasquale on December 16, 2016 at 7:00 am and is filed under Child Welfare Law.

  This will be the last On the Civil Side blog post for 2016. We will be back on January 11, 2017. That gives you plenty of time to listen to Episode 4, “The Case Plan: In and Out of Court,” for our Beyond the Bench Season 2 podcast, available now!

  This episode picks up where episode 3 ended. There’s been an adjudication of child neglect and an initial disposition order entered by the court. Now the family and department are engaged in case planning. The court is monitoring the progress and ultimately deciding what the final goals for the family are through periodic review and permanency planning hearings.  Find out what’s involved both in and out of court. Continue Reading

• Beyond the Bench Podcast, Season 2: Episode 3 — The Trial: Adjudicating Neglect

  This entry was contributed by Sara DePasquale on December 2, 2016 at 6:00 am and is filed under Child Welfare Law.

  Episode 3, “The Trial: Adjudicating Neglect,” for our Beyond the Bench Season 2 podcast is available now! This episode picks up where episode 2 ended, with the adjudicatory hearing for alleged child neglect in our two different cases. Spoiler Alert! There are different outcomes.

  Listed in order of appearance, featured guest interviewees include:

  Continue Reading

• Check Out Episode 2, “The System Responds,” of Beyond the Bench Season 2

  This entry was contributed by Sara DePasquale on November 18, 2016 at 6:00 am and is filed under Child Welfare Law.

  Episode 2, “The System Responds”, for our Beyond the Bench Season 2 podcast is available now! This episode picks up where the last episode ended, with two different reports of suspected child neglect being made to a county child welfare agency. The reports are based on family homelessness and other issues that are occurring in the children’s homes.

  This episode is organized into two parts.

  • In Part One, you will learn about how the county department responds to reports of suspected neglect through the screening in/out process, what is involved in a department’s assessment of a report, and what safety planning looks like.
  • In Part Two, you will learn about when court action is required, how it is started, and what is involved in obtaining an emergency order that removes the children from their homes.

  Continue Reading

• Beyond the Bench Podcast, Season 2: Episode 1, Without a Home

  This entry was contributed by Sara DePasquale on November 4, 2016 at 12:47 pm and is filed under Child Welfare Law.

  Earlier this week, I wrote a post that announced the introduction to Season 2 of the School of Government’s Judicial College podcast, Beyond the Bench. Season 2 consists of six episodes and discusses family homelessness, child neglect, and the child welfare system in North Carolina. The first episode, “Without a Home” is now available on our podcast website (or through Itunes and Stitcher).

  In this first episode, you will hear from two homeless shelter providers and three district court judges who preside over abuse, neglect, and dependency cases. You will learn about family homelessness in North Carolina, whether it constitutes child neglect, and when a person is required to make a report of a child’s suspected neglect to the county child welfare agency (e.g., department of social services). Continue Reading

• Season Two of Beyond the Bench, “Homelessness, Neglect, and Child Welfare in North Carolina,” Launches This Week!

  This entry was contributed by Sara DePasquale on October 31, 2016 at 2:00 am and is filed under Child Welfare Law.

  Beyond the Bench

  For those of you who aren’t in the know, earlier this year the School of Government’s Judicial College started a podcast, Beyond the Bench. A podcast is essentially a radio show that you can get on the internet, so you can listen any time you want.  “Beyond the Bench” is about the North Carolina court system and features interviews with interesting people who work in the courts. Our first season was hosted by my colleague, Jeff Welty, and focused on criminal law.

  Season Two: Homelessness, Neglect, and Child Welfare in North Carolina

  I am the host of Season Two, which focuses on neglect and the child welfare system with a particular emphasis on homelessness. Through six episodes, you will hear about family homelessness in North Carolina, whether homelessness is neglect and requires a report to a county child welfare (or social services) department under North Carolina’s mandated reporting laws, and the different stages of a child welfare case. Each episode discusses a different stage in a child welfare case and includes the various voices and perspectives of the people involved. Those voices include homeless shelter staff, county department social workers and attorney, the children’s guardian ad litem, a parent attorney, and district court judges.  Continue Reading