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| Children prepare for their day in court: 'They're being shown they have a voice' | Children prepare for their day in court: 'They're being shown they have a voice' |
| (30 days later) | |
| On a recent evening at the University of Nevada's Las Vegas Boyd Law School, student Dawn Hathaway Thoman was explaining the legal process to an unlikely audience: a 9-year-old boy and an 11-year-old girl. | On a recent evening at the University of Nevada's Las Vegas Boyd Law School, student Dawn Hathaway Thoman was explaining the legal process to an unlikely audience: a 9-year-old boy and an 11-year-old girl. |
| "Does anyone remember what a law is?" Thoman asked. It was their second session together and the kids were learning fast. "A law is something you have to follow, and if you break it, you have to go to jail and it's like, a rule you have to follow for a country," the boy said. | "Does anyone remember what a law is?" Thoman asked. It was their second session together and the kids were learning fast. "A law is something you have to follow, and if you break it, you have to go to jail and it's like, a rule you have to follow for a country," the boy said. |
| "What is a trial?" she asked. They sat at a conference table facing a model courtroom with the judge, jury, lawyer and witness as wooden figurines. "A trial is like, when you go to court to figure out who's right and wrong, like if someone broke the law?" the boy said, a tad unsure. "Who's guilty or not guilty," the girl added. Wearing dour expressions, the kids' guardians looked on. "That's exactly right," Thoman assured. "It's just a discussion in court. That's all it is." | "What is a trial?" she asked. They sat at a conference table facing a model courtroom with the judge, jury, lawyer and witness as wooden figurines. "A trial is like, when you go to court to figure out who's right and wrong, like if someone broke the law?" the boy said, a tad unsure. "Who's guilty or not guilty," the girl added. Wearing dour expressions, the kids' guardians looked on. "That's exactly right," Thoman assured. "It's just a discussion in court. That's all it is." |
| This is Kids' Court School, recent winner of a Harvard Kennedy School of Government "Bright Ideas" award, a program launched in 2002 by UNLV law professor Rebecca Nathanson to teach child witnesses – mostly victims of physical or sexual abuse – about the judicial process before they testify. Her clients range in age from 4 to 17. Attendance is free, and the Las Vegas legal community has sent more than 730 children to it over the past 10 years because, in the words of Teresa Lowry, an assistant district attorney: "Going to court can be very intimidating for a child, and part of that stress is the stress of the unknown." | This is Kids' Court School, recent winner of a Harvard Kennedy School of Government "Bright Ideas" award, a program launched in 2002 by UNLV law professor Rebecca Nathanson to teach child witnesses – mostly victims of physical or sexual abuse – about the judicial process before they testify. Her clients range in age from 4 to 17. Attendance is free, and the Las Vegas legal community has sent more than 730 children to it over the past 10 years because, in the words of Teresa Lowry, an assistant district attorney: "Going to court can be very intimidating for a child, and part of that stress is the stress of the unknown." |
| "Oftentimes in large prosecution offices, the volume is tremendous, case loads are very, very high and unfortunately deputy [district attorneys] don't always have time to sit down with child witnesses – show them the courtroom and explain the process," she added. | "Oftentimes in large prosecution offices, the volume is tremendous, case loads are very, very high and unfortunately deputy [district attorneys] don't always have time to sit down with child witnesses – show them the courtroom and explain the process," she added. |
| They begin with a lesson on legal jargon. According to a study by one of Nathanson's colleagues, for most kids, court is "a place to play basketball" and a charge is "a plastic card my mom uses at the mall". | They begin with a lesson on legal jargon. According to a study by one of Nathanson's colleagues, for most kids, court is "a place to play basketball" and a charge is "a plastic card my mom uses at the mall". |
| The identities and roles of each of the courtroom players come next, and on that evening the young boy stammered while describing the bailiff. "I think he like, protects. I mean, when someone gets mad, like the person that … I can't explain it," he said. | The identities and roles of each of the courtroom players come next, and on that evening the young boy stammered while describing the bailiff. "I think he like, protects. I mean, when someone gets mad, like the person that … I can't explain it," he said. |
| And that's where the law student jumped in. "You started to do a really good job, so don't lose confidence in yourself. You started to say his job is to protect and that's exactly right," Thoman said. | And that's where the law student jumped in. "You started to do a really good job, so don't lose confidence in yourself. You started to say his job is to protect and that's exactly right," Thoman said. |
| This strange vocabulary, these nebulous roles now clearly defined, the kids are then asked how it might feel to take the witness stand. | This strange vocabulary, these nebulous roles now clearly defined, the kids are then asked how it might feel to take the witness stand. |
| "You can feel embarrassed because everyone is looking at you," the boy said. | "You can feel embarrassed because everyone is looking at you," the boy said. |
| The girl answered: "You can be nervous." | The girl answered: "You can be nervous." |
| And Thoman assured them that those were "very normal feelings". | And Thoman assured them that those were "very normal feelings". |
| Indeed, while at UCLA medical school in the early 90s, Nathanson did a study observing children's heart rates in and out of the courtroom context, and the difference she noted was staggering. When questioned in a generic conference room, her 8- to 10-year-old subjects had pulses ranging from 60 to 120 beats-per-minute, a neutral to slightly nervous reaction. Yet when interviewed in a courtroom, answering questions from men and women in suits on a witness stand, these same children's heart rates jumped to as high as 240 beats-per-minute – a frantic response. | Indeed, while at UCLA medical school in the early 90s, Nathanson did a study observing children's heart rates in and out of the courtroom context, and the difference she noted was staggering. When questioned in a generic conference room, her 8- to 10-year-old subjects had pulses ranging from 60 to 120 beats-per-minute, a neutral to slightly nervous reaction. Yet when interviewed in a courtroom, answering questions from men and women in suits on a witness stand, these same children's heart rates jumped to as high as 240 beats-per-minute – a frantic response. |
| "Just being in the physical environment of a courtroom is very traumatic for kids," Nathanson said. "Never mind the content they have to discuss." | "Just being in the physical environment of a courtroom is very traumatic for kids," Nathanson said. "Never mind the content they have to discuss." |
| To arm the kids against that sort of panic, they then teach an anxiety reduction strategy. "We tell the kids to breath through their noses like they're smelling their favorite scent," – bacon in the boy's case, gingerbread cookies in the girl's – "and blow through their mouths hard like they're blowing out birthday candles," Nathanson said. | To arm the kids against that sort of panic, they then teach an anxiety reduction strategy. "We tell the kids to breath through their noses like they're smelling their favorite scent," – bacon in the boy's case, gingerbread cookies in the girl's – "and blow through their mouths hard like they're blowing out birthday candles," Nathanson said. |
| It's a strategy that can strike some of the older clients as corny, she admits, but for one at least it has proved useful. | It's a strategy that can strike some of the older clients as corny, she admits, but for one at least it has proved useful. |
| "I had a 16-year-old girl who wrote me a fabulous thank-you note. She had been removed from her mother's home two years prior because her mom's boyfriend had sexually abused her, and for the first time since then she had been allowed to see her mom. They met at the therapist's office. She said 'I walked in there, I smelled the roses, I blew out the candles, and it just helped me so much to be with my mom,'" Nathanson recalled. | "I had a 16-year-old girl who wrote me a fabulous thank-you note. She had been removed from her mother's home two years prior because her mom's boyfriend had sexually abused her, and for the first time since then she had been allowed to see her mom. They met at the therapist's office. She said 'I walked in there, I smelled the roses, I blew out the candles, and it just helped me so much to be with my mom,'" Nathanson recalled. |
| "Kids, no matter what happened, they kind of want to be with their parents," she added. "I think the program empowers them in a lot of ways." | "Kids, no matter what happened, they kind of want to be with their parents," she added. "I think the program empowers them in a lot of ways." |
| Asked what she thought about the experience, the boy's mother said she was impressed, but that "It's still upsetting. I would have done anything to have his testimony taken in form of a deposition or even tape recorded. But that's not part of the process. The process is every defendant has the right to face his accuser." | Asked what she thought about the experience, the boy's mother said she was impressed, but that "It's still upsetting. I would have done anything to have his testimony taken in form of a deposition or even tape recorded. But that's not part of the process. The process is every defendant has the right to face his accuser." |
| Her son got a sense of what that will be like in the final stage of Kids' Court: a mock trial inside a moot courtroom. In a hypothetical case involving a stolen bike, the kids played witness and judge while law students, dressed in courtroom attire, prodded them for details with questions like: "How do you know it was the defendant? Do you know the difference between a truth and a lie?" | Her son got a sense of what that will be like in the final stage of Kids' Court: a mock trial inside a moot courtroom. In a hypothetical case involving a stolen bike, the kids played witness and judge while law students, dressed in courtroom attire, prodded them for details with questions like: "How do you know it was the defendant? Do you know the difference between a truth and a lie?" |
| At times the boy seemed tentative, nodding instead of giving verbal responses. At his side, Thoman reminded him to speak – and to do so loudly. She also assured him it was OK to say, "I'm not sure" or "I don't remember," as long as that was true. | At times the boy seemed tentative, nodding instead of giving verbal responses. At his side, Thoman reminded him to speak – and to do so loudly. She also assured him it was OK to say, "I'm not sure" or "I don't remember," as long as that was true. |
| Sitting on the judge's bench, the girl closed his case with a "guilty" ruling for the defendant. Her testimony was next, she answered every question clearly and confidently, and afterward her grandfather said: "She's worried about facing the guy she's accusing, but I think this helped build her confidence a bit." | Sitting on the judge's bench, the girl closed his case with a "guilty" ruling for the defendant. Her testimony was next, she answered every question clearly and confidently, and afterward her grandfather said: "She's worried about facing the guy she's accusing, but I think this helped build her confidence a bit." |
| Another outcome – a seed planted in the kids through the lecture – may be that, as research has shown for victims of abuse, their long-term emotional experience is actually better for having successfully testified in court. "They actually heal because they feel like people believed them," Nathanson said. | Another outcome – a seed planted in the kids through the lecture – may be that, as research has shown for victims of abuse, their long-term emotional experience is actually better for having successfully testified in court. "They actually heal because they feel like people believed them," Nathanson said. |
| These kids' families certainly hope that will be the case. Ironically, however, Kids' Court was born out of a trial where the alleged victims were not believed, likely did not heal, if the alleged abuses did indeed occur. | These kids' families certainly hope that will be the case. Ironically, however, Kids' Court was born out of a trial where the alleged victims were not believed, likely did not heal, if the alleged abuses did indeed occur. |
| A case that stirred a national panic about sexual predators inside daycare centers, the McMartin Preschool trial in the mid-80s – the longest and costliest criminal trial in US history – examined 321 counts of child abuse against 48 children by the proprietors of a Manhattan Beach, California, preschool. The trial ran seven years, and all charges were ultimately dropped. Statements taken by a child therapist from the alleged victims were discredited in the courtroom for containing suggestive language. That led to a hung jury, as well as a surge in psychological research into children's testimonies, including work by Nathanson that evolved into the Kids' Court School curriculum. | A case that stirred a national panic about sexual predators inside daycare centers, the McMartin Preschool trial in the mid-80s – the longest and costliest criminal trial in US history – examined 321 counts of child abuse against 48 children by the proprietors of a Manhattan Beach, California, preschool. The trial ran seven years, and all charges were ultimately dropped. Statements taken by a child therapist from the alleged victims were discredited in the courtroom for containing suggestive language. That led to a hung jury, as well as a surge in psychological research into children's testimonies, including work by Nathanson that evolved into the Kids' Court School curriculum. |
| The program has since won accolades from the Las Vegas legal community and Harvard University, been featured at national and international conferences, and inspired requests for identical programs in other cities – all of which greatly excites its founder. She clearly takes more pride in receiving kudos from kids, though. | The program has since won accolades from the Las Vegas legal community and Harvard University, been featured at national and international conferences, and inspired requests for identical programs in other cities – all of which greatly excites its founder. She clearly takes more pride in receiving kudos from kids, though. |
| "There was a group of foster kids, 16 and 17 years old, tough-looking kids who have been in foster care forever, been deemed unadoptable, been in gangs," she said. "They came here for a field trip and I wanted to give them some context so I talked a bit about McMartin. How those kids were abused and they didn't have a voice in court, and that's why we have this program. | "There was a group of foster kids, 16 and 17 years old, tough-looking kids who have been in foster care forever, been deemed unadoptable, been in gangs," she said. "They came here for a field trip and I wanted to give them some context so I talked a bit about McMartin. How those kids were abused and they didn't have a voice in court, and that's why we have this program. |
| "The toughest kid of all, who was probably 6-foot-2, had tears in his eyes," she recalled. "He said, 'When I was growing up we had to live with her mom and her boyfriends. My mom had to work, and when we were alone with this one boyfriend, he always did that stuff to my little sister. I never did anything to protect her. And I can't believe it.' | "The toughest kid of all, who was probably 6-foot-2, had tears in his eyes," she recalled. "He said, 'When I was growing up we had to live with her mom and her boyfriends. My mom had to work, and when we were alone with this one boyfriend, he always did that stuff to my little sister. I never did anything to protect her. And I can't believe it.' |
| "This was at 17 years old. This happened years ago when he was young, and I had to sit there and reassure him. I said: 'You were young! You couldn't do anything. That was a grown up adult. We know you love your sister,'" she said. "That kid along with the others walked out of here – these tough gangbanger kids – and you know what they said? 'This is the coolest program. This is so cool that you're doing this.' | "This was at 17 years old. This happened years ago when he was young, and I had to sit there and reassure him. I said: 'You were young! You couldn't do anything. That was a grown up adult. We know you love your sister,'" she said. "That kid along with the others walked out of here – these tough gangbanger kids – and you know what they said? 'This is the coolest program. This is so cool that you're doing this.' |
| "These kids who come through here have all been affected. No matter how tough they look, these kids have been hurt, and now they're being listened to. They're being shown that they have a voice, and what they say is important, and that's what's empowering," she said. | "These kids who come through here have all been affected. No matter how tough they look, these kids have been hurt, and now they're being listened to. They're being shown that they have a voice, and what they say is important, and that's what's empowering," she said. |
| "My personal and professional goal is not to become famous," she added. "It's to make sure that kids have a voice in court." | "My personal and professional goal is not to become famous," she added. "It's to make sure that kids have a voice in court." |
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