Indiana is one of just six states that does not require counsel for children in child welfare cases in any situation, according to the National Association of Counsel for Children. Although Indiana Code § 31-32-4-2 does give state court judges the discretion to appoint counsel for children in child welfare cases, stakeholders say the Hoosier State could be forced to implement a direct representation program either through lawsuits filed by national children’s rights organization or federal legislation that Congress is considering.
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For Keely Tackett, having her son, Baron, home was the end of a nearly 10-year struggle during which she had to continually convince the courts, social workers, therapists and sometimes even herself that she was a fit mother and could care for her oldest child.
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Filings for child in need of services and termination of parental rights cases have swung in opposite directions in the past few years, according to statistics released recently by the Indiana Supreme Court.
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Extra hours away from the outside world because of stay-at-home orders offered Indiana’s judges and attorneys at least one positive thing during the coronavirus-pandemic – time. Whether spending time with family or using quiet moments of solitude to revive rusty creative skills, many legal professionals are finding the joy and peace of everyday tasks in the midst of uncertain times.
Read MoreAn amended rule granting temporary licenses to out-of-state attorneys who are waiting for admission to the Indiana bar will now include lawyers working as deputy prosecutors and some attorneys working at the Indiana Department of Child Services.
The Marion Superior Court Executive Committee has announced the family recovery court, which started in 2010, will be closing at the end of the month. Dwindling participation along with concerns about how the program was being operated have been cited as among the reasons for the decision to stop. But stakeholders and graduates say the closure will have a devastating impact, rippling beyond the participants to their children and extended family members.
Senior judge and former head of the Indiana Department of Child Services Mary Beth Bonaventura has been appointed judge pro tempore to fill a vacancy in Marion Superior Court 15, starting Feb. 7 and continuing until further order from the Indiana Supreme Court.
A former Indiana Department of Child Services supervisor who alleged he was fired in retaliation for complaints he made about race and sex discrimination will not be able to proceed with his complaint after a federal judge granted summary judgment to the state. However, one 14th Amendment claim survived the ruling.
A former family case manager for Indiana’s child welfare agency allegedly falsified records involving child abuse or neglect and falsely documented contact with four families.
The parents of a 5-year-old girl who drowned last summer in a southwest Indiana city’s swimming pool are suing the city and the child’s foster parent, accusing them of negligence in her death.
Indiana’s child welfare agency has won a motion to dismiss a lawsuit filed by a grandmother alleging her criminal history was intentionally altered to prevent her grandson from living in her home.
In a case that even the district court acknowledged tested the limits of federal interference in state court matters, the Indiana Department of Child Services and Gov. Eric Holcomb are asking the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals to review the denial of their motion to dismiss a lawsuit brought by children in the foster care system.
The Indiana Department of Child Services won a judgment from the U.S. District Court of the Northern District of Indiana on Friday following allegations from a man who claimed a caseworker entered his home to take photos without permission, resulting in the removal of his children.
A trial court was without statutory authority when it ordered a father to participate in an informal adjustment without his consent, the Indiana Court of Appeals has ruled.
Two young women have been selected to serve as the voice of Indiana’s youth in foster care and social services and will be the newest — and youngest — members of the Commission on Improving the Status of Children Indiana.
Two Madison County minors will remain in the custody of their grandparents after out-of-state relatives failed in their appeal of an adverse judgment in their adoption case.
Kids’ Voice of Indiana has signed a contract with the city of Indianapolis to provide guardian ad litem and court appointed special advocate services to Marion Superior Courts through the end of 2023, with the nonprofit set to receive $5.4 million for the remainder of 2021.
A CHINS finding against a Hendricks County girl was reversed Thursday after the Indiana Court of Appeals found determined the underlying evidence had been “exaggerated.”
Kids’ Voice of Indiana will be the sole operator of the guardian ad litem and court appointed special advocate programs for Marion County juvenile courts after Child Advocates, which had provided those services for decades, rejected the subcontract agreement the two organizations had been negotiating.
An eastern Indiana woman whose three-month-old son died last year from methamphetamine intoxication has agreed to plead guilty to a neglect charge in the infant’s death.
Kids’ Voice of Indiana and Child Advocates are close to inking a deal after the city of Indianapolis announced it would be switching providers of the Guardian Ad Litem and CASA services for the Marion County juvenile court May 1.
Described as a “model of the nation,” an Indiana juvenile justice reform bill passed the Indiana House of Representatives with Democrats and Republicans all voting in support of the measure.
Calls to Indiana’s child abuse and neglect hotline fell by more than 10% last year compared to the previous two years, and an expert said that may reflect the isolation brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.
With just three weeks before its contract with the city of Indianapolis ends, Child Advocates is trying to negotiate a subcontract with Kids’ Voice so it can continue providing volunteers and staff to advocate for youngsters in Indiana’s child welfare system. Meanwhile, a report questioned longtime contractor Child Advocates’ cost overruns.