Senate Journal: Page 63: Wednesday, January 15, 1997

  3rd Day WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 15, 1997 63 electronically rather than through
  the mail. In addition to speeding up the process,
  this means less work for the Transportation Department.
  We're working with the Department of Safety to create a domestic abuse
  registry.
  The registry will provide law enforcement officials with up-to-the minute
  information about protective orders in all ninety-nine counties. This will
  be a powerful
  weapon in Iowa's battle against domestic abuse.
  We're excited about our new jury management computer software that will
  streamline the jury system and make jury service more convenient for the
  public. How will it work? Well, right now nearly all of the counties use two
  jury commissions,
  one composed of three citizens and the other composed of three local
  officials, to create their lists of prospective jurors. It's all done by
  hand with thousands of pieces of
  paper. In a county the size of Story County, the entire process takes over
  four days. With our new program, it will take only a few hours.

  Also, following the recommendations of our Equality in the Courts Task
  Force, this
  new program will make jury pools more representative of a county's
  population and answer any claim there is subjectivity in the present system.
  How? Through the
  magic of technology, computers will sort the names and compile the lists.
  This program will help make jury service more convenient. The 1-trial /1-day
  option,
  which has been used successfully in Scott County, means that persons called
  for jury service are obligated to serve on only one trial. Once they've
  served they won't be
  called again for two years. Or, if they come to the courthouse on the first
  day of service and are not picked to serve, they're relieved from jury
  service for two years. It's
  much easier than being on call for jury service for three months. Contrary
  to vicious rumor, this program was in place long before I was called to
  appear for jury
  duty at the Wapello County Courthouse later this month.
  Our court improvement project for child in need of assistance cases, which
  is now in
  the implementation stage, will surely help brighten the future of hundreds
  of children and families living in limbo each year as they wait for the
  courts to sort out
  the wreckage of their lives. Six task forces are busy working on specific
  recommendations needed to implement this report. One of the groups is
  studying our
  juvenile laws for changes needed to improve our child in need of assistance
  process. We plan to present these recommendations to you next year.

  We learned from the study phase of this program that our courts are doing a
  good
  job overall with these important cases. But, however well we have performed,
  we must find ways to do even better. We need to find more time for hearings.
  For
  instance, fifteen minutes for a non-contested case or one hour for a
  contested case is often not enough when the future of a child or the life of
  a family is on the line. At
  the same time, we need to bring closure to such cases sooner. Three to four
  years, from the time of filing a child in need of assistance petition to the
  time of entering an
  order finalizing an adoption, is simply too long. We also need to improve
  the quality of legal representation provided to children and families. These
  crucial cases
  call for careful preparation. An initial meeting between an attorney and
  clients in the courthouse hallway to discuss the case, just before a
  hearing, is notgood enough.

  Fine enforcement efforts are expanding. Last summer we started sending cases
  through our computer network to the Central Collection Unit of the
  Department of

Iowa General Assembly

Index: Senate Journal (77th General Assembly: Session 1)

© 1997 Cornell College and League of Women Voters of Iowa

Comments? sjourn@legis.iowa.gov.

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