When DCF believes that allegations of abuse or neglect require court involvement they will file a Neglect Petition. In the Stamford Juvenile Court DCF cases usually occur on Thursdays.
Here is an overview:
Orders of Temporary Custody
In the most urgent of cases, DCF will remove a child under a 96-hour hold and then apply to a judge for an Order of Temporary Custody (OTC). For a judge to grant an OTC, there must be a finding that the child needs immediate protection. During this process, DCF will explore suitable relatives for temporary placement. If none is available, the child will be placed in foster care. Every OTC application will have a Neglect Petition.
Neglect Petitions
In cases where an OTC is not necessary, DCF may still file a Neglect Petition. Usually these types of Petitions allege that the child is being denied proper care or being permitted to live under circumstances injurious to their well-being.
Possible Outcomes
If DCF cannot prove at least one of their allegations, the Neglect Petition will eventually be either withdrawn by DCF or dismissed by a Juvenile Court judge.
For those cases in which DCF can establish one or more of their claims, the Neglect Petition will play out in one of the following ways:
Protective Supervision. The child continues to live with the parents or guardians but DCF has court-imposed oversight over the family for a specified period of time. The parents are provided with Specific Steps, which set forth what is expected of them to retain custody and ultimately have the case end.
Commitment. DCF becomes the child’s legal guardian. The child’s residence or other placement is determined by DCF.
Transfer of guardianship. A third party (not DCF) becomes the child’s legal guardian. The judge must make a finding that the proposed guardian is suitable and worthy to assume the role of guardian. Ordinarily, the guardian is relative but there are some instances where a non-relative assumes guardianship.
For most DCF Neglect Petitions, a parent should consider representation by an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, you are entitled to court appointed counsel because of the serious nature of these proceedings.
Contact me online or call me in my Stamford office at (203) 356-1475 or in my Fairfield office at (203) 259-5251 for a consultation regarding your Stamford Juvenile Court DCF cases.
When a child is arrested for allegedly committing a crime in Bridgeport, Easton, Fairfield, Monroe, Norwalk, Shelton, Stratford, Trumbull, Weston or Westport. they will be summoned to appear in Bridgeport Juvenile Court. Now that the Stamford Juvenile Court has closed, cases from Danbury, Darien, Greenwich, New Canaan and Wilton are also heard in Bridgeport.
Bridgeport Juvenile Court
The most common offenses that are handled in the Bridgeport Juvenile Court include:
- Larceny first, second the third degrees
- Motor vehicle theft – Larceny of a motor vehicle
- Assault
- Conspiracy
- Disorderly conduct
- Breach of peace
- Criminal Mischief
- Arson
- Interfering with police
- Burglary
At the initial plea hearing (arraignment), the judge will read an advisement of rights:
1. The right to remain silent. The child is not obligated to say anything about the case to anyone. If they do, those statements may be used against the child.
2. The right to counsel. The child is entitled to legal representation. If the family is considered indigent, the court will appoint counsel (public defender) for the child.
3. The right not to be questioned. The child cannot be questioned unless they agree and they can have their attorney present during any interrogation if they choose. At any point during questioning, the child may stop answering questions.
4. The right to a trial. Many cases in Connecticut Juvenile Court result in a plea bargain with the Prosecutor. But sometimes the “deal” from the State is unacceptable. A child always has the choice to take the case to trial and force the State to prove the allegations against them “beyond a reasonable doubt.”
Depending on the alleged offense and the child’s criminal record, there may be certain programs available to a child if an agreement cannot be reached with the Prosecutor. If one of these programs is successfully completed, the case is dismissed. The possibility of participating in one of these diversionary programs should be explored with your Juvenile Court lawyer.
Please email me or call me in Stamford at (203) 356-1475 or in Fairfield at (203) 259-5251 to schedule a consultation regarding a child arrest in the Bridgeport Juvenile Court.
A child arrest for allegedly commtting a crime in Darien, Greenwich, New Canaan, Stamford or Wilton, Connecticut? If so, they are summoned to the Stamford Juvenile Court.
Here is a brief summary of the process:
First court appearance – also known as initial plea date or arraignment
This is the date referenced on the Summons – typically a Tuesday. At this appearance, a juvenile court judge will advise the child of the following:
- The right to remain silent;
- The right to an attorney;
- The right to have an attorney present during any questioning;
- The right to a trial.
Once in awhile the case can be resolved on the spot. But usually the child’s attorney will enter a plea of “not guilty” and the case will be continued for a pretrial conference.
Pre-trial conference
This is ordinarily the first opportunity for the child’s attorney to speak in depth with a Prosecutor. Topics to be discussed include:
- The police report and witness statements
- The child’s prior juvenile court involvement such as arrest and conviction history
- The child’s eligibility to participate in certain programs
- The potential for reduced charges including the possibility of resolving the case through a plea agreement.
A juvenile court record may have potential consequences that follow a child into their adult life. Decisions to accept a “deal” must be carefully weighed.
Additional court dates
If an agreement is reached at the pre-trial conference, future court dates may be assigned. For example, an appearance before a judge is required for probation cases. Court dates may also be scheduled to ensure that the child has satisfied certain agreed upon requirements (i.e. community service, counseling).
Trial
If the child maintains their innocence or when the Prosecutor offers a “lousy deal” the case will eventually be scheduled for trial. At the trial, the State must prove the charges “beyond a reasonable doubt.” The child’s attorney will have an opportunity to cross-examine witnesses, object to evidence and present the appropriate theory of the case.
You may contact me by email or by calling my Fairfield office at (203) 259-5251 or in Stamford at (203) 356-1475 for further information concerning a child arrest.
Modification of Unallocated Support is permitted. Under Connecticut law, either spouse can petition the court for a post judgment modification of alimony unless the divorce decree precludes modification. The modification may be a request to increase or decrease the award, or temporarily or permanently stop the payments.
The party requesting the post-divorce modification has the burden of proving to the court that there has been a substantial change in circumstances since the original support award was entered, or since the last time the order was modified. There is no set list of what constitutes a “substantial change in circumstances” – instead, the court considers the parties’ individual circumstances when making this determination.
A recent modification of support in Bridgeport illustrates that a judge can reduce unallocated alimony and child support if the payor’s health has deteriorated and his income has decreased.
In that case, the original order was $10,500 per month as unallocated support (alimony and child support combined). Apparently, the ex husband lost a large portion of his clientele which reduced his income. In order to continue to make payments and meet the current support obligations he asked his new wife to sell some of her assets. He also listed his house in Fairfield for sale.
Based on this, it seemed clear that there was a substantial change in his circumstances. However, the judge still had to decide on what the new support number would be. This happens a lot – it’s often not a question of whether the payor will get a break with a modification but what a fair and reasonable amount is.
The judge ultimately reduced the amount to $4,500.
Please email me or call (203) 259-5251 to discuss a modification of unallocated support in Connecticut.
Once in awhile I get a call from a potential client about whether to pursue an annulment or file for divorce.
A divorce terminates a valid marriage. So if the marriage is legit then divorce is the only option.
An annulment on the other hand is a legal finding that the marriage never existed because it was never valid. The marriage was never legit.
Depending on the grounds for the annulment, the marriage would be either be considered void (automatic invalid) or voidable (marriage is valid until a spouse requests an annulment).
Some grounds for annulment in Connecticut include:
- Marriages between individuals within a certain degree of kinship – close relatives
- One the parties to marriage were already married – bigamy
- Qualifications regarding the person performing the wedding ceremony
- Fraud or duress existed at the time the marriage was entered into.
Annulments in Connecticut do occur but they are pretty rare. Here’s why:
First, in Connecticut we have “no fault” divorce. Therefore, a spouse can be granted a divorce simply based on “irretrievable breakdown” without getting into fingering pointing.
Secondly, take a look again at the list of annulment grounds. Those types of claims are unusual. And without those established facts, you cannot get an annulment.
Finally, there is a strong public policy in Connecticut that marriages are valid. Basically, marriages are presumed to be legit. So, annulment grounds have to proven by “clear and convincing evidence.” This is a higher standard than the typical standard required for a divorce.
Connecticut courts generally can make the same orders whether it’s an annulment or a divorce. One minor difference is that the ninety-day waiting period applicable to a divorce does not apply to an annulment.
If grounds do exist for an annulment, a spouse should weigh the cost involved and the emotional aspects of proving the case. In some instances, the better approach might be straightforward divorce.
Please contact me if you wish to discuss a possible annulment in Connecticut.
Connecticut Parental Alienation Custody Modification to the non-offending parent happens. In fact, a Connecticut divorce judge can (and should) award sole custody to one parent when the other parent engages in parental alienating behaviors.
Here is a summary of a recent, high conflict case.
A psychologist conducted a court ordered psychological evaluation of the parents. It appeared that the mother was encouraging the child to fight with her father. He opined that allowing the child to live with the mother would eliminate the emotional and social progress the child made while residing with the father. He concluded that it would be a “tragic error” to give the mother primary custody.
There were also tape recordings of the mother attempting to estrange the child from the father.
As in most divorce or custody cases involving claims of parental alienation, there are three best interest factors in play:
- The willingness of and the ability of each parent to facilitate encourage a parent-child relationship
- Manipulation or coercive behavior of a parent in an effort to involve the child in the parent’s dispute
- The mental health of all parties.
In many parental alienation cases, supervised visitation is ordered to screen the content of the offending parent’s communication with the child – at least until they finally “get it.” However, in this case, the mother was allowed to have unsupervised parenting time contingent on her remaining in individual therapy and actively supporting the child’s relationship with the father.
In my experience, sometimes intense counseling works such that the offending parent eventually understands how toxic alienation is. If they don’t, visitation should be suspended or closely monitored.
Contact me online or call me in my Stamford office at (203) 356-1475 or in my Fairfield office at (203) 259-5251 to discuss your options concerning a Connecticut Parental Alienation Custody Modification.