Deck 12: The Legal Response to Child Abuse and Neglect

Question 1

If a family does not appear to be workable, a protective services worker might opt to take the case to

A) criminal court
B) juvenile court
C) a mediator
D) judicial court
E) none of the above

Answer 1

juvenile court

Question 2

Parents have the right to

A) be notified of a hearing
B) have counsel
C) confront the accuser
D) to be informed of their rights
E) all of the above

Answer 2

all of the above

Question 3

According to the 1978 Indian Child Welfare Act, Native Americans

A) have their own court proceeding instead of the state proceedings
B) must abide by the laws of the state in which they reside
C) have the right to physically punish their children and not be subjected to court
D) choose their own attorneys as long as they are not Native Americans who might be biased
E) all of the above

Answer 3

have their own court proceeding instead of the state proceedings

Question 4

Initiation of criminal proceedings

A) may go through the police, the district attorney or be filed by the protective agency
B) can only be initiated by the district attorney
C) must be initiated by the police
D) can only be initiated by the protective agency

Question 5

The initial or adjudicatory hearing is for the purpose of

A) making a final disposition on the case
B) reviewing the parents' progress in treatment to date
C) fact finding and possibly deciding the custody of the children
D) a and b only
E) all of the above

Question 6

Once a petition is filed and the case is heard, there are several custody options for the children. Which of the following is NOT one of those options

A) children are returned to their parents custody until the case can be investigated
B) children are placed with relatives
C) children are returned to parents physically but the protective agency maintains legal custody
D) children are placed in foster care
E) none of the above

Question 7

A(n) ________ witness is one whose credentials the court accepts and this allows him/her to answer hypothetical questions about the case. It is one time when opinion is allowed.

A) hypothetical
B) professional
C) expert
D) unbiased
E) agency's

Question 8

Once a case has gone through the juvenile court process, a disposition can be made. Which of these is possible?

A) the case can be dismissed
B) the judge may order custody of the children to the protective agency
C) the judge may suspend judgment based on the parent's willingness to comply within a certain time frame
D) the judge may terminate parental rights
E) all of the above

Question 9

The letters CASA

A) stand for Court Appointed Special Advocate
B) refer to volunteers who help in the representation of the children's interests
C) refer to paid court appointees who speak for the children
D) refer to special attorneys appointed for parents who cannot afford them
E) a and b only

Question 10

Recently many states have begun to mandate the referral of cases where there is ________ to criminal court.

A) custody
B) physical abuse
C) sexual abuse
D) neglect
E) substance abuse

Question 11

Diagram the procedure if a case was taken through the juvenile court process. Why might a case come to the attention of the juvenile court? What are some possible outcomes?

Question 12

What is the impact on children of being involved in the court process? What steps could be taken to minimize the "system induced trauma"?