By The Honorable Timothy A. Hinkfuss, Brown County Circuit Court, Branch VII
I handle one-half of the juvenile delinquency cases, child in need of protection and service cases, termination of parental rights cases, and adoptions in Brown County. I find CASA to be especially valuable in my juvenile rotation.
First, the CASA representative is a resource for the child. Judges, corporation counsel, defense counsel and the guardian ad litems use words and terminology that are alien to the children involved in the case. I find the CASA representative is a valuable resource to explain the court proceedings to the child.
Second, I find the CASA representative to be valuable to provide insight to the judge. A CASA representative is appointed by the judge. Consequently, I do review the periodic CASA reports from the CASA representative to the judge. I find these reports to be a very valuable insight into the dynamics between the parties. This is important because it helps me formulate a disposition that is the best interest of the child.
Lastly, I find the CASA representative especially valuable to the parties in the children’s action. So often the parties look upon Social Services, the guardian ad litem and the corporation counsel as adverse parties. My experience is that the parties are much more comfortable with a CASA representative because they are not part of “the system”.
In conclusion, CASA is an especially valuable resource for me to determine what is in the best interest of the child.