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Hi, I’m Amy Messer, Legal Director here at the Disabilities Rights Center in New Hampshire.
Today we’re talking about juvenile justice and special education. In New Hampshire, children
often find themselves in court in either delinquency or CHINS Proceedings. Delinquency cases are
cases in which a child, under age 17, is alleged to have committed an offense which would be
considered a felony or misdemeanor under the Adult Code. A CHINS case is different. CHINS
stands for child in need of services. CHINS petitions are filed on children under the
age of 18 for one of three reasons. First, the child is regularly truant from
school, or Second, the child habitually runs away from
home or disregards the lawful commands of their parents, and places themself in unsafe
situations, or Third, the child repeatedly engages in activities
that would be considered violations under the criminal code;
In order to be deemed a Child In Need of Services, the Court must also find that the child is
in need of care, guidance counseling, discipline, treatment or rehabilitation.
While both children with and without disabilities may be referred to the Juvenile Justice system,
there is a special duty imposed upon the courts to consider whether a child might have a disability
and whether the School District has evaluated and identified the child with a disability;
and lastly, whether the child is receiving appropriate educational services from the
school. The Court may, on its own, or on the recommendation
of any party to the proceeding, join the School District in the case. The Court must bring
in the School District if at any time the court is considering residentially placing
the child. Under New Hampshire law, the court may direct the School District to determine
whether the child is a child with a disability under special education law, or the court
can order the school district to review the child’s special education plan to determine
whether the services they are receiving are adequate and appropriate. If the Court orders
the School District to determine whether the child is a child with a disability for the
purposes of special education, the School District must treat this as a special education
referral and conduct evaluations and convene team meetings as required by the Special Education
Laws. As with any referral for special education,
if the parent disagrees with the Team’s decision, the parent can request a due process
hearing at the Department of Education to challenge that decision.
If you are a child, parent or guardian, and have questions about the rights of children
with respect to the juvenile justice system in New Hampshire or special education, please
feel free to contact the Disabilities Rights Center at 1-800-834-1721.
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