“Indiana is third in the U.S. for removal of children for substance abuse reasons which is cause for concern,” said Pulaski Circuit Court Judge Mary C. Welker. “It is clear from the cases I see, that when the court has multiple generations of children removed from parents, that we need to try a different approach. Statistically families who complete family treatment court are much more likely to remain sober. Our Family Treatment Court will address the entire family in addition to addressing the original reason for court contact.”

The Pulaski Circuit Court was awarded grant funding from the Indiana Office of Court Services to implement a Family Treatment Court in 2019 and 2020. Family Treatment Courts are also referred to as a Special Problem-Solving Courts which are known, nationally, as the most effective court programs. These courts focus on family engagement, substance abuse and work holistically with the family unit to help break the cycle of addiction, child neglect, and other criminal activity.

Family treatment courts are a rapidly expanding program model designed to improve treatment and child welfare outcomes for families involved in child welfare system and juvenile system who have substance abuse challenges and/or need more family engagement support. Studies on family treatment courts have shown that parents with substance abuse challenges enter treatment more quickly, stay in treatment longer, and complete treatment compared to parents who do not work through a family treatment court.

Furthermore, children who are child welfare-involved report positive outcomes that included more likelihood of unification with families, and they receive resources/supports more quickly and effectively. This is due to the team court approach to support families, increased judicial contact, and more consistent court appearances for the families.

“Being able to further develop and implement a Family Treatment Court will address local needs of families in the community who are battling substance abuse and have numerous barriers to treatment and family compliance,” said Dr. Natalie Tucker, court program coordinator. “There has been a tremendous amount of work put into developing this highly intensive program. We want to help families and children to get the service and supports they need while also reducing recidivism rates.”

The goal is to have temporary operational certification by this spring and be operational by March/April.

Written by and submitted by: Dr. Natalie Tucker, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.