Evening star., 1951-06-04
Text of Committee Report on Juvenile Court

ext OF NOn1H1I1
The Juvenile Court study COM
ntttee today made public the
results OF its Seuen-month anal
gsis OF the court and its oper-
Gtions. FOLLOWING Is the tert OF
Its discussion on the focal point
OF a community tDide protest
against the court, the conf
dental nature OF Juvenile Court
records:
. The laws of many OF the States,
including the District of Columbia,
provide certain safeguards in
respect to the confidential nature
of juvenile court records. Their
purpose is to prevent any public
ity which would in any way ham,
per the court in working with the
child or family. The law also
provides that disposition of a
child's case cannot be used as
evidence against the child in SUBJ
sequent proceedings in an adult
court, nor can it be used to dis
qualify a child in any future civil
service examination, appointment
or application for public service
under either Government of the
United States or of the District of
Columbia.
Many of these laws give the
Juvenile Court Judge some discre-
ton in granting permission for
inspection of records. The Stand
ard Juvenile Court Act in this
respect reads as follows:
1.-THE courts official records shall
be open to inspection only by con-
sent of the judge to persons having
a legitimate interest therein. All
information obtained and social
records prepared in discharge of
official duty by any employee of
the court shall be privileged and
shall not be disclosed directly or
indirectly to anyone other than
the judge or others entitled under
this act to receive such informa-
tion, unless and until otherwise
ordered by the judge"
The present District of Columbia
Juvenile Court Act reads as fol-
lows (section 1923, District Of
Columbia Code):
Such records shall be open to
inspection by respondents, their
parents or guardians, or their duly
authorized attorneys.
This section of the District of
Columbia statute is considerably
more rigid than corresponding sec
tions of the laws of other States
or of the Standard Act. The judge
of the Juvenile Court is given no
discretion. What discretion is
given is placed in the judge of
another court. It is the thinking
of this committee that the judge
of the Juvenile Court is in a much
better position to exercise this
discretion. The judge of the
Juvenile Court is much more
familiar with the functions of the
other agencies in the community
giving related services to chill
dren and their need to secure In
formation from court records.
In exercising this discretion, it
should be kept in mind that the
intent of the law was to protect
children. This should not be in
terpreted so rigidly that the right
to inspect records is denied other
agencies having a legitimate in
terest therein. Representatives of
other accredited family and
children's agencies as well asI
members of other probation de-
partments doing presentence in
vestigations should be considered
in this group. Agencies in other
fields, such as law enforcement
and military service should be
given the relevant information
contained in these records to as
sist them in the discharge of their
official duties.
Whenever the court commits al
child to another agency or insti-
tuition, the statute provides that
sit shall transmit with the order
OF commitment summary of it's
information concerning such
child" There is a definite feeling
on the part of some of these agen-
cies that the information they re-
ceive concerning the child and
his family is inadequate. After
reviewing a few summaries re-
ceived by one agency the COM
mittee is of the same opinion.
The summaries which were re-
viewed averaged between a page
and a page and a half in length.
Although the District of Colum-
bia statute in this respect is SINH
lar to the Standard Act and laws
in many of the other States, the
more progressive courts have rec
ogniZed the need for transmitting
to the treatment agency or in
stitution as full and complete a
record on the child and family as
possible. The treatment agencies
should have carbon copies of the
face sheet, social study, clinical
reports and such as medical, psy-
Geological and psychiatric exam
nations in addition to a brief
summary of the child's adjust
ment if previously on probation
as well as previous court appear
ances. Actually, this would pro-
vide the necessary information
greatly needed by the agencies
and at the same time reduce the
work of the court personnel in
that only the child's adjustment
m l1rnha finn would bova fo ho