Kentucky

From the Elizabethtown News-Enterprise is a story on:

Family court-dedicated prosecutor part of renewed family services

By BOB WHITE

bwhite@thenewsenterprise.com

ELIZABETHTOWN ? With a second Hardin County Family Court bench headed into a second year, and following more than a year of disturbing reports about local social services, the Hardin County Attorney?s office in mid-July employed its first full-time prosecutor for domestic violence, parental rights, custody and juvenile cases.

With several months of work behind her, family court prosecutor Carey Hendricks talked this week to The News-Enterprise about her role with domestic issues and the value of having a dedicated prosecutor for family cases.

?When you?re dealing with such intimate issues, it makes good sense to have someone dedicated to the process,? Hendricks said. ?It brings continuity to the process.?

Before Hendricks joined the office, family court prosecutors in Hardin County had split roles ? prosecuting criminal cases one moment, then addressing family issues the next.

Among those former family court prosecutors is 9th Circuit Family Court Judge M. Brent Hall, who filled Hardin County Family Court?s second judgeship last year after a gubernatorial appointment.

He said a dedicated family court prosecutor provides other parties involved with a consistent ?go-to person? familiar with family court rules, methods and procedures ? all of which helps expedite cases.

?Bad news doesn?t get better with age,? Hall said. ?Whether you?re dealing with kids? lives or the (state) budget, we don?t have the luxury of dragging our feet.?

Noting Hendricks? fulltime status, education and experience ? along with other positive improvements being made with families in mind ? Hall said ?things are looking up in family court.?

Hendricks, 33, is a former victims? advocate with the Jefferson County Attorney?s office holding a Bachelor?s of Science in Psychology, a Master of Arts in Community Counseling and Juris Doctorate from the University of Louisville.

She said her position with the Hardin County Attorney?s office is exactly where she wants to be.

?I always knew I wanted to be a different kind of lawyer,? Hendricks said. ?I wanted to use my background as a victim?s advocate to make a difference.?

She?ll have plenty of opportunity to do that. A primary focus of the family court prosecutor?s role is dealing with dependency, neglect and abuse issues, known in Hardin County as the ?DNA docket.?

Heart-wrenching situations, such as child abuse, emergency removal of children from their homes and termination of parental rights are part of any given day for Hendricks. She said she?s ready, willing and able to handle the traumatic situations brought before her and the two family court judges.

?With emergency removals, for example, I take very seriously the potential impacts to all involved,? she said. ?People have the fundamental right to raise their children. I want to bring a sense of justice back into this process.?

A 2007 report by the National Institute on Children, Youth & Families slammed the Department of Community-Based Services? Elizabethtown office with allegations of fast-tracked adoptions, unnecessary termination of parental rights and administrative malpractices. Kentucky?s Office of the Inspector General substantiated some of the claims, causing confidence in Hardin County family services, courts and social workers to wane.

Hendricks said past issues with DCBS seems ?like the elephant in the room no one mentions,? but said positives within Hardin County social services are also apparent.

?There seems to be a renewed focus on accountability and training,? within the cabinet, Hendricks said. ?They?re striving to overcome what they?ve been through and bring fairness and justice back into the process.?

Hendricks said she hopes to be part of a renewal of family services in Hardin County. She hopes the county can someday employ methods and services similar to those she grew familiar with while working as a victims? advocate in Jefferson County.

A centralized intake for domestic violence victims and a review board to research instances of family violence are two items on Hendricks? wish list.

Hall said he?s impressed with Hendricks? work in the courtroom.

?She?s doing a good job,? he said. ?She immediately impressed me, initially, with one particularly tough case. She walked in and addressed the issues, rather than me having to ask questions. This allows me more time to listen and make a judgment.?

In addition to Hendricks? position as a dedicated family court prosecutor, Hall said he?d like to see guardians ad litem, dedicated to advocating for the interests of children who are removed from their homes, and dedicated legal counsel for parents in Hardin County Family Court.

Such an environment would have ?everyone speaking the same language,? Hall said. ?Even though they?re working on opposite sides of the table, they?re still working as a team.?

On the horizon is another positive for Hardin County families experiencing troubles.

A Hardin County-based chapter of CASA ? Court Appointed Special Advocates ? has been re-established with a board recently approved by national CASA officials.

The  all-volunteer group provides trained volunteers a judge may appoint to determine the best interests of a child.

CASA volunteers differ from guardians ad litem, since guardians ad litem must be trained attorneys. The attorneys are paid by the state a maximum of $500, thus limiting the amount of time an attorney can dedicate to a case.

Bob White can be reached at (270) 505-1750.