Beyond the Bench - Friday, December 16, 2011

This presentation will review the latest research findings on the specific treatment and supervision practices that are associated with more effective and cost-efficient outcomes in drug courts. A lively discussion will ensue about the practicalities of undertaking these best practices in light of program cutbacks. This information can be
extrapolated to other collaborative court programs.

Ms. Deborah Cima, Treatment Court Coordinator, Superior Court of San Bernardino County
Ms. Lisa Lightman, Collaborative Courts Director, Superior Court of San Francisco County

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California’s collaborative courts are responding to multiple changes and challenges. These include court budget cuts, realignment, budget constraints for justice and treatment partners, and the impacts of the fiscal crisis on participants and their families. Realignment activities in 2011 have shifted the responsibility and funding for many programs from the state to the local level, including drug courts, adult offenders and parolees, and mental health and substance abuse treatment. Panel members will discuss how the changing environment in California affects the court system, collaborative courts, and court teams, and the role of collaborative courts in meetingthe challenge.

Hon. David Rosenberg, Presiding Judge, Superior Court of Yolo County
Hon. Stephen V. Manley, Judge, Superior Court of Santa Clara County
Hon. J. Richard Couzens (Ret.), Judge, Superior Court of Placer County
Hon. Richard Vlavianos, Judge, Superior Court of San Joaquin County (Moderator)
Mr. Mack A. Jenkins, Chief Probation Officer, San Diego County Probation Department
Ms. Kim Turner, Court Executive Officer, Superior Court of Marin County

Many veterans fight a war within to overcome their violent reactions. Behavioral impairments from brain injury, along with an increased activation of the limbic system associated with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), can perpetuate aggressive and violent behavior. Combat veterans’ courts can assist in the reentry of such veterans into civilian life, including women service members suffering from sexual trauma. The role of mentors in veterans’ courts is also discussed.

Hon. Eileen Moore, Associate Justice, Court of Appeal, Fourth Appellate District, Division Three
Dr. Cynthia Boyd, Co-Senior Scientific Director and ClinicalNeuropsychologist, CTR Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine, Inc., Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center

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Drug courts are the most studied of all collaborative courts. A significant amount of research has been done in California and nationally that allows us to identify the most effective and efficient drug court practices. Research will be presented on the top ten most effective drug court strategies for reducing recidivism and cutting costs, derived from evaluations in California and throughout the country. Examples will be presented of how to use data and research regarding cost effective strategies to modify practices and leverage resources at the local level.

Hon. Richard Vlavianos, Judge, Superior Court of San Joaquin County
Ms. Francine Byrne, Supervising Research Analyst, Collaborative Justice and Community Corrections Programs, Administrative Office of the Courts
Dr. Shannon M. Carey, Executive Vice President and Senior Research Associate, NPC Research
Ms. Julia Scott, Senior Office Coordinator, Collaborative Justice Courts, Superior Court of San Joaquin County

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Often the focus in Family Drug Courts is on the parents and their treatment needs, with all partners assuming the needs of the child are being addressed elsewhere. In fact, the children of parents participating in drug court are at heightened risk for their own developmental, behavioral, mental health and substance abuse concerns. Responding to the needs of the child/family, as well as the parent, significantly increases the chances of successful reunification; decreases the risk of relapse and recurrence of maltreatment; and intervenes in the cycle of generational substance use and child abuse and neglect. This workshop will focus on the impact of parental substance use and co-occurring mental health disorders and trauma on child development; the importance of effective tools and strategies for addressing the needs of both the parent and the child; and, the role of the Family Drug Court team in identifying and meeting these needs.

Dr. Sharon Boles, Director, Research and Evaluation, Children and Family Futures
Ms. Linda Carpenter, Program Director, In-Depth Technical Assistance Program, Children and Family Futures

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Collaborative court programs typically face on-going funding and resources challenges. In 2011, collaborative courts, including drug courts and mental health courts, are undergoing particularly severe challenges due to reductions in local and state government budgets and unprecedented cuts to the judicial branch budget. In addition, courts and their collaborative partners are adjusting to changes in how public safety services are funded. Faculty for this workshop will examine ways to ensure program stability, develop grant proposals designed to meet the needs of collaborative court clients, and work within new contracting requirements and parameters.

Ms. Lisa Lightman, Collaborative Courts Director, Superior Court of San Francisco County
Ms. Pamela Miller, Collaborative Courts Coordinator, Superior Court of Riverside County
Ms. Catharine Price, Senior Court Services Analyst, AOC Court Programs and Services Division
Ms. Martha Wright, Senior Court Services Analyst, AOC Court Programs and Services Division

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This “judicial officers only” roundtable is designed to provide judicial officers with an opportunity to candidly discuss the opportunities and challenges of developing and maintaining collaborative courts in a time of reduced resources and new responsibilities for the court system, their justice system partners, and the counties they
serve.

Hon. J. Richard Couzens (Ret.), Judge, Superior Court of Placer County
Hon. Stephen V. Manley, Judge, Superior Court of Santa Clara County
Hon. Richard Vlavianos, Judge, Superior Court of San Joaquin County

The Child and Family Services Improvement Act of 2006 enacted the broadest federal program ever launched to assist states, tribes, and communities to improve the well-being, permanency, and safety outcomes of children who are in out-of-home placement, or are at risk of placement as a result of a parent’s or caregiver’s methamphetamine or other substance abuse. The legislation created the Regional Partnership Grant (RPG) program, which will improve access to substance abuse treatment and other community services through significant collaborative partnerships and will facilitate the reporting of both child welfare and substance abuse treatment outcomes for children and families. California is home to 9 of the 53 RPG sites. This workshop will provide an overview of the RPG program, including a look at the partners, the strategies being employed by the partnerships, and performance indicator data on over 19,000 children and 12,000 adults participating in services, as well as a summary of performance data from the nine California sites.

Dr. Sharon Boles, Ph.D., Director, Research and Evaluation, Children and Family Futures

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The Task Force for Criminal Justice Collaboration on Mental Health Issues (TFCJCMHI) presented its final report to the Judicial Council in April 2011. The 137 recommendations in the report provide a framework for improving practices and procedures in our courts for cases involving adult and juvenile offenders with mental illness. This workshop outlines key recommendations and focuses on ways the courts and their local criminal justice and mental health partners can work together to improve outcomes and reduce recidivism.

Hon. Stephen V. Manley, Judge, Superior Court of Santa Clara County
Mr. Mack A. Jenkins, Chief Probation Officer, San Diego County Probation Department

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Questions about the constitutionality of investigating allegations of child abuse by interviewing children at school were not answered by the United States Supreme Court’s decision in Camreta v. Greene (2011 WL 4530024 (U.S.)). This workshop will focus on the law and social work practice after this decision.

Mr. Darren Kessler, Attorney
Ms. Yvonne Leal, Professor of Social Work, California State University at Stanislaus
Mr. Gary Seiser, Supervising Deputy County Counsel, San Diego County Counsel Office 

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Collateral consequences often result from an arrest or an adjudication in juvenile court. The reality is that with increasing consequences being attached to juvenile adjudications, there can be significant consequences that can affect everything from education and future military service to employment. These consequences are not
always mitigated by informal probation or even sealing. This workshop will explore how adjudications for offenses often carry with them long-term consequences that are not always contemplated at the time of disposition in juvenile court.

Ms. Sue Burrell, Staff Attorney, Youth Law Center
Ms. Rourke Stacy, Deputy Public Defender, Los Angeles County Office of the Public Defender

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This is a 2-hour workshop devoted to exploring effective cross examination techniques to obtain key testimony from a child abuse expert. Review of important neurology findings and points will be discussed. In instances where expert testimony is unavailable, key medical points will be identified and explored so all relevant information can be included in the case.

Ms. Tilisha Martin, Supervising Attorney, Dependency Legal Group
Ms. Marymichael Miatovich, Attorney, AOC Center for Families, Children & the Courts
Dr. Charles Niesen, Pediatric Neurologist, AMS Neurology

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This workshop will focus on substantive legal issues when youth are placed out of state. The issues to be discussed are found in the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (UCCJEA), the Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children (ICPC) and the Interstate Compact on Juveniles (ICJ).

Ms. Gabriella Raymond, Deputy County Counsel, Alameda County Counsel Office
Ms. Grace Tam, Deputy County Counsel, Alameda County Counsel Office

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This session summarizes 2011 case law and legislation relevant to delinquency and provides an overview of
significant appellate and Supreme Court cases.

Hon. Kurt Kumli, Judge, Superior Court of Santa Clara County

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This session summarizes 2011 case law and legislation relevant to dependency and provides an overview of significant appellate and Supreme Court cases.

Hon. Jacqueline H. Lewis, Commissioner, Superior Court of Los Angeles County
Hon. Anthony Trendacosta, Commissioner, Superior Court of Los Angeles County

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The participants will learn what challenges face county Offices of Education in educating incarcerated youth and youth in camps, court, and community schools. Presenters will share challenges to the education of these youth from the perspective of a county educational system, and will discuss relationships with probation, mental health, other community entities, and school systems from which these students come. Panelists will present opportunities and success models, will address barriers to implementing improvement plans, will present steps or programs to improve educational and systems working with these incarcerated youth, and will discuss how similar systems and/or actions could be structured to improve the overall approach to educating youth in the juvenile justice system.

Mr. Martin Cavanaugh, Consultant, Retired Deputy Superintendent, Sacramento County Office of Education
Mr. Christopher Cross, Chairman, Cross & Joftus, LLC
Dr. Richard Krause, Consultant, Retired Principal, Youth Detention Center
Dr. Alice Parker, Senior Associate – Director of Special Education; Retired Assistant Superintendent,
Cross & Joftus, LLC
Ms. Bo Vitolo, Director, Division of School Improvement, Los Angeles County Office of Education
Ms. Laura Pedicini, Attorney, AOC Center for Families, Children & the Courts (Moderator)

This workshop will focus on advocating for incarcerated parents and their dependent children. Faculty will discuss the legal requirements in offering services to incarcerated parents, including defining reasonable services in these cases. Participants in the workshop will gain an understanding of the barriers in offering services to the parents and learn tips for advocating for incarcerated parents and their children.

Hon. Marguerite Downing, Judge, Superior Court of Los Angeles County
Ms. Ellen Bacon Wiley, Attorney, Los Angeles Dependency Lawyers

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Attendees will ask questions and Ms. Rebecca Gudeman will troubleshoot issues.

Ms. Rebecca Gudeman, Senior Staff Attorney, National Center for Youth Law

This workshop will begin with an overview of the laws that apply to shared information (education records, mental health, medical and substance abuse treatment records), as well as confidentiality/consent vs. privilege issues. An in-depth interactive examination of how information flows between key agencies, courts, schools, service providers, and others, as well as an opportunity to troubleshoot specific issues, will be key components of this informative workshop.

Ms. Rebecca Gudeman, Senior Staff Attorney, National Center for Youth Law

This workshop will explore how our approaches to and thinking about school discipline and school climate issues have evolved over the past ten years. We will hear from local, state and national experts about how some school districts have been successfully built principles of restorative justice into school practices and developed new ways to address school discipline concerns. We will consider what seems to be working in today's climate and why and also address the critical and differing roles of school, judicial, and law enforcement officials in processes of change. Finally, we will discuss how best to build collaborations, develop and promote reforms and engage key leaders and stakeholders in our evolving understanding of what works and why.

Mr. Anthony Pico, Commissioner, California Blue Ribbon Commission on Children in Foster Care
Mr. Castle Redmond, Program Director, The California Endowment
Ms. Diana Tate Vermeire, Racial Justice Director, ACLU Northern California

This workshop for court-appointed counsel will focus on the complex issues of sex abuse cases. These issues will be presented by an expert in the field. Participants will be able to ask the expert follow-up questions. Skills learned in this workshop will include identifying various elements in sexual abuse cases that can complicate the determination of what actually occurred. It will also discuss disclosures and recantations of sexual abuse in a developmental context and will address problematic parent reactions to child sexual abuse.

Ms. Carolyn Levenberg, Assistant Supervising Attorney, Dependency Legal Group, San Diego County
Mr. Dylan Roy, Staff Attorney, Dependency Advocacy Center, Santa Clara County
Dr. Gwynneth Smith, Clinical Psychology Postdoctoral Fellow, University of California at San Francisco

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As we continue to improve upon our educational system, where does workforce development fit into our longrange goals for youth at risk and youth reentering the community from the justice system? How can we engage businesses and the private sector in promoting youth workforce efforts? What challenges do youth face as they
exit the justice system and seek to enter the workforce? What pending federal reforms might help guide and advance these efforts? This workshop will address the challenges facing youth at risk, as well as some innovative approaches to workforce development that have successfully mitigated those challenges. State and national experts will discuss barriers to employment facing youth at risk, describe innovative approaches to workforce development that have successfully mitigated some of those challenges, and provide an overview of national reforms that seek to promote and support employment of youth at risk.

Ms. Deborah Alvarez-Rodriguez, Chief Executive Officer, SF Goodwill
Ms. Miriam Krinsky, Lecturer, University of California at Los Angeles, School of Public Affairs
Mr. Robert Schwartz, Executive Director, Juvenile Law Center
Ms. Mala Thakur, Executive Director, National Youth Employment Coalition
Mr. Vance Webster, Consultant, Homeboy Industries

The training will cover issues that arise for parents when child care is part of the custody agreement. We will talk about privacy and access to information, drop-off and pick-up issues, the need for court orders, financial obligations, and what to do when there is domestic violence. We will also address how child care subsidies for low-income families can be affected by child support orders or payments ordered through the custody agreement.

Ms. Claire Ramsey, Staff Attorney, Child Care Law Center

Santa Clara County Superior Court, Pro Bono Project of Silicon Valley, and volunteer attorneys are collaborating
on several day-of-court conflict resolution programs at Family Court. Volunteer attorneys are assigned to select
cases on law and motion calendars to address custody and visitation issues using collaborative and mediation
models. The panel members include two family law judges who currently have these programs in their
courtrooms, and three attorneys involved in implementing the program. They will review the various elements,
including identifying the partners and bringing them to the table, determining the appropriate cases, the role of
the Self Help Center staff, training and mentoring volunteer attorneys, securing funds in difficult fiscal times, and
sustainability.

Hon. L. Michael Clark, Judge, Superior Court of Santa Clara County
Hon. Margaret Johnson, Judge, Superior Court of Santa Clara County
Ms. Karen Russell, Attorney at Law
Ms. Fariba Soroosh, Supervising Attorney, Self Help Center/Family Law Facilitator, Superior Court of
Santa Clara County
Ms. Jennie Winter, Director of Client Services, Pro Bono Project Silicon Valley

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This workshop will consider how legal professionals can improve their ability to respond to tactics abusers employ within the legal system to perpetuate abuse against victims of domestic violence. The panel will present on a variety of methods being used against victims, such as filing baseless restraining order requests and ex parte requests alleging kidnapping, calling the police on the victim, filing non-stop custody requests, andattempting to prejudice the judge by claiming that the victim is only seeking a restraining order for immigration purposes.

Ms. Cindy Liou, Staff Attorney, Asian Pacific Islander Legal Outreach (Expertise in Human Trafficking,
Immigration, and Domestic Violence)
Ms. Khanh Nguyen, Staff Attorney, Asian Pacific Islander Legal Outreach (Expertise in Domestic Violence, Family
Law, and Human Trafficking)
Ms. Staci Martinez, Attorney, Bay Area Legal Aid
Ms. Akiko Takeshita, Staff Attorney, Asian Pacific Islander Legal Outreach (Expertise in Elder Law, Domestic
Violence, and Family Law

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In addition to many legislative changes and case law this year, many family law rules and form changes will become effective January 1, 2012. This workshop will cover these changes and those that are scheduled to come into effect later in the year.

Hon. Mark A. Juhas, Judge, Superior Court of Los Angeles County
Ms. Ana Maria Garcia, Supervising Attorney, Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles County (Moderator)
Ms. Bonnie Rose Hough, Managing Attorney, AOC Center for Families, Children & the Courts

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This presentation will discuss family law and housing law strategies that can be used to address some of the most common housing issues DV survivors encounter. It will include a variety of tools to protect survivors’ housing rights, eviction defense, early lease termination, and lock changes for survivors. It will also review the Violence Against Women Act, fair housing laws, DVPA, family laws, civil code, and collaborative community support.

Ms. Protima Pandey, Staff Attorney, Bay Area Legal Aid
Ms. Meliah Schultzman, Staff Attorney, National Housing
Law Project

This session will introduce advocates to asylum claims founded on gender-based violence and violence against
children. It will use three case studies that represent common claims: a domestic violence-based claim, a claim
involving child abuse, and a claim in which the applicant fears persecution by gang members.

Ms. Stacey Rose Fernandez, Staff Attorney, Center for Gender and Refugee Studies, Asylum Law, UC Hastings

This interactive training will follow the full process of representing a survivor of intimate partner violence in the dissolution of his or her domestic partnership or marriage, from intake and an initial restraining order to a judgment of dissolution. The case study will involve many issues that can arise in these cases, including determinations of parentage, preservation of eligibility for public housing and other benefits, and federal tax implications of property division and support.

Ms. Catherine Sakimura, Staff Attorney & Family Protection Project Director, National Center for Lesbian Rights
Mr. Paul Thorndal, Partner, CFLS, Wald & Thorndal, PC
Additional faculty TBD

This presentation will offer an overview of how immigration status influences a client’s interactions with attorneys and government agencies, including courts, in the legal process. The presentation will provide a familiarity with general immigration vocabulary and an understanding of why immigration law is relevant to legal practice in low income communities. An additional theme of this course is how deportation fears may affect legal practice and client engagement with immigrant families. This knowledge is fundamental in helping to develop a case, as well as providing competent legal services. A description of what may occur when an undocumented immigrant parent is separated from his/her U.S. citizen child is also reviewed. Additional resources on the intersection of immigration and social work are included.

Ms. Eliana Kaimowitz, Attorney, Equal Justice Works Fellow, California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation
Ms. Yali Lincroft, Policy Consultant, First Focus

Working with low-income litigants from vulnerable populations, including parents with criminal records, parents who have histories of drug or alcohol abuse, and parents who are living with mental illness, present unique challenges and obstacles in custody and visitation disputes. Although these parents are often stereotype as ‘bad parents’, the reality is that many of these parents are survivors of trauma, both as children and adults, and are dealing with the effects of multiple socio-economic barriers in their lives. This panel will identify many of the challenges vulnerable parents face in establishing and maintaining relationships with their children, and effective tools and creative strategies practitioners can use to address these issues in the case. First, we will provide an overview of who these vulnerable parents are, and the cyclical relationship between domestic violence and incarceration, addition, and mental health. Next, we will discuss the legal challenges that many parents in this population face, including modifying juvenile dependency court exit orders and permanent family law orders, rebutting Family Code 3044, and the difference between ‘family reunification’ in family law cases as compared to dependency court cases. We will then use case studies to demonstrate how challenges were identified, assessed, and overcome in custody and visitation disputes in our own practice. Finally, we will open the panel up to questions and discussion to encourage a dialogue about providing direct legal services and direct representation to low-income vulnerable parents, as well as assuring the best interests of the children are met in these types of cases. Attendees will be provided with written materials including a bibliography of important cases pertaining to this population of parents and custody and visitation decisions; a checklist for rebutting family code 3044; and a checklist for parenting assessment.

Ms. Meredith Alexander, Staff Attorney, Harriett Buhai Center for Family Law
Ms. Katherine Ojeda Stewart, Equal Justice Works Fellow, Harriett Buhai Center for Family Law

This training will educate participants about working with domestic and dating violence survivors aged 25 and under. Current brain research confirms what youth advocates have been saying for years – our brains are not fully developed when we turn 18. So what can attorneys who work with clients aged 18-25 learn from youth advocates? We will provide the audience with developmentally appropriate tips for working with these clients. We also will review the available legal rights and remedies for domestic and dating violence survivors who are still legally minors.

Ms. Nicole Edwards-Masuda, Youth Program Manager, Family Violence Law Center
Ms. Erin Scott, Director of Programs, Family Violence Law Center
Ms. Kristie Whitehorse, Managing Attorney, Family Violence Law Center