NCJ Number
178666
Journal
Advocate Volume: 9 Issue: 2 Dated: June 1999 Pages: 1-5
Date Published
1999
Length
5 pages
Annotation
This article discusses the Tennessee Child Protective Service and juvenile justice reform proposals.
Abstract
In August 1998, Tennessee juvenile court judges were surveyed about Child Protective Service (CPS) and juvenile justice reform proposals. Of those expressing an opinion, two-thirds said the Child Protective Teams (CPT) in their courts were doing a good job, and 62 percent felt that the Department of Children’s Services (DCS) was doing a good or very good job of coordinating the teams. However, only 52 percent felt efforts were successful in preserving family life to the maximum extent by enhancing parental capacity for adequate child care. Recommended improvements in the CPS process included: (1) making law enforcement responsible for performing all CPS investigations; (2) establishing a dual track investigation system; (3) doing a better job of implementing CPTs; (4) expanding CPT responsibilities; (5) establishing county Child Advocacy Centers; and (6) establishing multi-disciplinary teams. Figures