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Luzerne County Court officials have added a playroom near the family courtroom and plan to bring in a therapy dog to reduce stress on children.
“We were concerned about these kids being stuck waiting in a sterile hallway,” said county Court Administrator Michael Shucosky, who publicly presented a report to county council members this week outlining these and other new initiatives.
Parents and caregivers regularly bring children into the court housed at the Bernard C. Brominski building on West North Street in Wilkes-Barre for abuse and neglect, custody and child support cases, Shucosky said Thursday.
Some children must be present to meet with a judge, but often the parent and caregivers have no other options, he said.
“You’d be amazed how many must bring the children with them because they have no alternate caregivers,” Shucosky said.
The playroom offers a “safe and comfortable place” for children to wait, his report says. It was painted at no cost by a local artist and stocked with toys and games donated by staff and attorneys, he said.
Court representatives are working with the volunteer Therapy Dogs International to bring in a dog to comfort children several days a week, the report said.
County Councilwoman Eileen Sorokas praised court officials for coming up with the idea during this week’s 2017 court budget presentation.
Another new family court initiative listed in the report: truancy court. Court officials are developing a standalone truancy court that involves parents, school districts, teachers and judges in cases of excessive school absenteeism, which often signals deeper family problems, Shucosky and the report said. A pilot program is being tested in the Greater Nanticoke Area School District.
The county’s criminal court initiatives are increasing the use of technology in courtrooms, updating and expanding video conferencing to avoid the burden and cost of transporting prison inmates to courtrooms for some proceedings and creating a central court, the report said.
County Court of Common Pleas Judge Michael T. Vough and other court officials have been pushing for a central court in Wilkes-Barre and the Hazleton area because it would involve county district attorney’s office prosecutors in all criminal cases sooner. The strategy should significantly reduce the prison population by more quickly weeding out defendants who don’t require incarceration, court officials have said.
County District Attorney Stefanie Salavantis has said funding for additional staff would be needed and warned a reduction in incarceration is not guaranteed.
County Manager C. David Pedri said the county Veteran Affairs building — a converted house adjacent to the county’s Water Street prison — is an option for the central court, but he stressed he would not consider that location unless he can identify a new home for veteran services that is in the same area with ample space and parking for veterans.
The court’s 2017 proposed budget includes a $25,000 allocation for implementation of a central court, but Pedri said no additional staffing for the district attorney’s office or other impacted departments has been budgeted.
According to the new court report, the Wilkes-Barre court ideally would be located close to the county prison to allow defendants to walk there, avoiding police transport. Under the current system, police officers from throughout the county must drive to the prison to pick up inmates for preliminary hearings, transport them to the magisterial district judge’s office, take the inmates back to the prison and then return to their home municipalities, the report said.
Among the other new initiatives cited in the report:
• “Safe centers” are being established at state police barracks and local police stations to provide a place for protection-from-abuse (PFA) requests to be filed when county court offices are closed. The centers will allow complaint filers to appear before the on-duty district judge through videoconferencing to obtain temporary PFAs.
• A new mentor program for military veterans participating in the county’s drug treatment and mental health courts is expected to launch in January. A group of veterans has signed up to serve as mentors, providing guidance and support for offenders.