In 1977 King County Superior Court Judge David W. Soukup of
Seattle, Washington believed that he was not getting all the
facts needed to make well-informed decisions affecting the
future of children coming before him in child welfare cases.
While attorney guardians ad litem were being appointed to abuse
and neglect cases in Seattle, they generally lacked the time and
specialized training needed to thoroughly investigate these
cases. Social workers had high caseloads resulting in inadequate
staff to give each child individualized attention. Judge Soukup
believed that someone other than an attorney could be trained to
speak effectively for each child as an advocate in the
courtroom, someone who would help shape the important decisions
being made about that child’s future. Judge Soukup reached out
to the community for help and the first court appointed special
advocate or CASA program was established in his court in 1977.
In 1996, the Federal Child Abuse and Prevention Treatment Act
was amended to include CASA volunteers as one of the court’s
options for guardian ad litem appointment.
By 2003, the concept of citizen volunteers advocating in court
for abused and neglected children had expanded to a network of
more than 900 CASA/GAL program offices in 49 states and the
District of Columbia with volunteers providing
millions of hours of service to children each year. The
National Court Appointed Special Advocate Association (NCASAA)
was created in 1982 to promote, assist and support development
and growth of quality CASA/GAL programs. NCASAA is a membership
organization providing technical assistance, information-sharing
and national public awareness resources to the network of local
programs. The work of the association is driven by this aim:
The National CASA Association, together with its state and
local members, supports and promotes court appointed volunteer
advocacy for abused and neglected children so that they can
thrive in safe, permanent homes.
CASA/GAL volunteers are a liaison between the court and the
community. Most citizens do not know what goes on behind the
closed doors of the juvenile and family courts of this
nation—but the CASA/GAL volunteers do. The CASA/GAL volunteer
sees the pain and trauma of the child first hand. CASA
volunteers understand the law and the court process. The
CASA/GAL volunteer guides the child through the labyrinth and
gives the child emotional support and comfort during a time of
crisis. The CASA/GAL volunteer investigates the case and offers
the Judge information in order to make an appropriate
disposition—frequently this is information that no one else has
located. The CASA/GAL volunteer knows what disposition the
community expects and demands that the system be accountable to
uphold the best interest of the child.
If you are a judge interested in learning more about starting a CASA
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