Show me the money

JUVENILE COURTS' ROLE DEBATED
Placing kids out of homes means more funding
By Encarnacion Pyle, Columbus Dispatch, Sept. 11, 2006, News pg 1B.

Juvenile-court judges in some Ohio counties have tapped millions of dollars in federal money for nearly a decade by sending children who are on probation into foster care, group homes or treatment centers.

But the practice could be in jeopardy because of questions about whether it is appropriate and ethical for court officials to be both legal officers and child-welfare workers.

The Ohio Judicial Conference, a judges association created by state law, is investigating the matter based on concerns raised by Butler County officials.

The group's decision would affect at least 25 county juvenile courts that have taken over the children-services role for teens deemed unruly or delinquent. That would include courts in Fairfield, Licking and Pickaway counties.

For Franklin County, the decision could determine whether officials pursue the federal reimbursements.

"The problem is the more kids that are placed out of their homes, the more money the court gets, which might lead some people to question the court's motivation: helping the youngsters or getting the money?" said James W. Mason, administrative judge for Franklin County Juvenile Court. "We want to be cautious and not do anything that will hamstring us later."

Similar concerns led legislators to change state law last year so that Ohio's 18 minimum-security jails are governed by a board of local people who are not judges, said Mark Schweikert, the Ohio Judicial Conference's executive director.

An Ohio Supreme Court disciplinary committee ruled in 2003 that having judges on correctional boards "casts doubt on impartiality, demeans the judicial office and interferes with the performance of judicial duties," said Schweikert, who served as a judge in Hamilton County for 11 years before taking over the Judicial Conference.

Before the change, a 24-year-old state law allowed judges to help run the jails.
State officials said they don't think the courts will have to make changes in this case.

"Ohio law allows it. Other states such as California and Texas have done it for years. And the federal government encourages it and has even asked us to help other states start similar programs," said Dennis Evans, a spokesman for the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services.

"While we don't see any imminent threat, we'll review and consider any recommendations by the Judicial Conference."

Many of the courts involved say they're also taking a wait-and-see approach.

"The issue has been discussed ... for years, but I didn't know the concerns had reared their ugly head again," said Cheri Shaw, director of the Fairfield County Juvenile Court.

The Fairfield County court kicked off its Title IV-E program in July 2005 and received its first payment last week, Shaw said. The federal government has partially reimbursed local governments for providing foster care to poor children since 1980.

Child-welfare agencies have taken advantage of the program since the beginning. Ohio courts started being certified in the mid-1990s.

Shaw predicts the federal program will result in an extra $520,000 a year for troubled children in Fairfield County who need counseling or treatment for mental illness, physical abuse or sex offenses.

Every little bit helps, said Dianne Hopkins, administrator for Pickaway County's juvenile court. "We're a small county, and our county is broke. The treatment centers for these kids are there, but they are so ungodly expensive. This helps us pay for it."

The federal reimbursements give the courts options other than sending kids to detention, said David Edelblute, who oversees the Licking County Juvenile Court.

"The bottom line is kids commit offenses and come into our system," Edelblute said. "We have a responsibility to seek solutions."

Officials in Butler County hope to do the same, even though they opened the debate when they asked the Ohio Supreme Court in March whether it would be unethical for the court to become essentially the "child-placing" agency for its delinquent and unruly kids.

"We've tried to find ways to stretch the dollar but we've had to cut our probation staff from 21 to 15 and do away with most of our prevention services," said Rob Clevenger Jr., director of the Butler County Juvenile Justice Center. "By becoming a Title IV-E court, we could bring in an additional $400,000 to $500,000 a year."

The Supreme Court referred the matter to the Ohio Judicial Conference.

Franklin County Children Services has custody of about 300 kids on probation, Director John Saros said. "We've essentially become the court's diversion program.

"In fact, the court has become so dependent on Children Services it has accumulated a $7 million reserve in state funding intended to be used to rehabilitate juvenile offenders."

Saros said every juvenile court in the other major metropolitan counties has become a Title IV-E court. If Franklin County court officials did so, too, the county could receive an additional $3 million a year in federal funding.

But court officials say they can barely handle the work they have and are worried about probation officers becoming social workers.

"We have the highest number of cases but the lowest number of judges in the state," said Karen Casey, Juvenile Court director. "We had a 4 percent budget reduction last year, an 8 percent cut this year and are facing flat-line funding at best for '07. How are we going to take on any new responsibilities?"

Becoming a Title IV-E court would help, said Crystal Ward Allen, executive director of the Public Children Services Association of Ohio.

"Last year, counties pulled in $5.2 million in federal funds for their administrative management alone," Allen said. "At minimum, Franklin County could bring in $1 million, and $3 million is certainly possible."