Proposal would open child abuse hearings in Nevada

Proponents of a bill to open court hearings on child abuse say public scrutiny of the process could help the children and bring reform to the Nevada agency overseeing child welfare.

AB132 would require that all court hearings on child abuse and neglect cases be open to the public unless the judge declares it closed in the best interest of the child.

Judge Gerald Hardcastle, who presides over family court in Clark County, told the Assembly Judiciary Committee on Monday that the public has a fundamental right to know what happens in court.

Hardcastle added that greater public scrutiny of the child welfare system and its administration would fundamentally improve the way the state serves children in need.

"I have wished a thousand times the community could see what I see and listen to what I listen to," Hardcastle said.

He told lawmakers about a teenager who was supposed to be placed in regular foster care after being hospitalized, but the state Department of Child and Family Services didn't find space for him.

The judge said he wonders if the state would have treated the boy differently if it had come out in the press that the boy was lingering in a hospital unnecessarily.

"I think we've lost a lot of respect for why we have open courts," Hardcastle said.

Opponents of the bill argued that protecting the rights of children is the most essential part of the courts' work, and that presumptively opening all hearings on child abuse and neglect would hurt that effort.

"These kids haven't done anything wrong," said Ed Cotton, director of the state Division of Child and Family Services. "They deserve privacy rights."

Hardcastle said that other states have opened their abuse and neglect hearings, and reporters have respected the privacy of the children and not used children's names in their stories.

Cotton also said that children often don't want to testify about abuse they suffered, and are less likely to do so in the face of public scrutiny.

Washoe County Judge Charles McGee said he supports open courts, but neglect and abuse cases should, at the very least, be closed until courts can determine whether it would be detrimental to the children involved.

McGee offered an amendment to AB122 that says the hearings will be presumptively closed, but that judges can open the hearings when they deem it in the interest of the children.

"To open it up carte blanche is taking too great a risk as to the safety of the children," McGee said.

In a paper written on the subject for a legislative committee on children, youth and families, Hardcastle said open hearings would make judges, caseworkers and lawyers exercise greater care and professionalism, put forth information critical to good government and educate the public about child welfare.