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Post-Katrina Juvenile Competency Determinations: A Tale of Two Systems

Dr. Wills is Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry, University Hospitals of Cleveland, Cleveland, OH. Address correspondence to: Cheryl D. Wills, MD, Department of Psychiatry, University Hospitals of Cleveland, 11100 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44106. E-mail: cwforensic{at}earthlink.net

Natural disasters such as Hurricane Katrina have resulted in the displacement of families to locations throughout the nation. Juvenile courts have been affected by this mass migration of youths. Postdisaster recovery has been slow. Consequently, a cohort of youths has aged out of the juvenile justice system before their juvenile competency hearings could be held. Some of these young adults now face charges as adults in criminal courts. The author explores what happens when youths awaiting juvenile competency determinations age out of the system and face charges as adults. The evolution of the problem, the current situation, case examples, and possible solutions are reviewed.