Present: Judge Sonja Clapp, Chair Judge David Reich Judge Todd Cresap, via telephone Connie Portscheller, via telephone Dennis Herbeck Robin Huseby Karen Kringlie Tara Mulhauser Dale Rivard Bob Rutten
Absent: Judge Richard Grosz Scott Davis
Staff: Louie Hentzen Lee Ann Barnhardt Catie Palsgraaf Lana Zimmerman, scribe
Judge Clapp called the meeting to order. She asked for comments on the minutes from the
December 2, 2010 meeting. Dennis Herbeck moved to approve the minutes; Dale Rivard
seconded. Minutes approved.
Sub-Committee Reports
GAL Sub-Committee - Dennis Herbeck, Chair. The GAL sub-committee and the lay GAL
Review Board met on March 9, 2011. Members of the lay GAL Review Board are as follows:
Susan Solheim, Judicial Referee; Travis Finck, Defense Attorney; Marlyce Wilder, State’s
Attorney; Heather Pautz, Barnes County SS Director; Hannah Balaban, Guardian ad Litem. This
Review Board will be meeting when a complaint is launched in regards to a GAL member.
Parties directing any complaints may be redirected to Brad Swenson who will then refer them to
this Review Board.
Also discussed were Budget issues. HB 1078 is relating to the immunity of the lay guardian ad
litem. This bill has passed and is at the Governor’s office for signature.
Education Sub-Committee - Robin Huseby, chair. A $10,000 donation sponsorship was
utilized for the 2011 ICWA Conference. Also covered was the registration fee for 16 court staff
and judges and 5 guardians ad litem to attend.
Five Juvenile Court Officers will be sent to Dakota CAC Training on Child Sexual Abuse on
March 24, 2011 in Bismarck. Facilitator is Dr. Anna Salter.
Out of State Training is as follows:
a. 2011 Child Welfare League Nation Conference - March 27-30, 2011. Those
attending are: Kevin McCabe, Robert Martin, Joel Larson, and Meredith Larson.
b. National Conference on Juvenile and Family Law - March 27-30, 2011. Those
attending are: Connie Portscheller and Brad Peterson.
c. Equal Justice for Children - National District Attorney Assoc. - April 4-8, 2011. Attending: Nancy Yon
d. NCJFCJ Annual Conference - July 24-27, 2011 in New York. Attending: Pending
e. 14h Bi-Annual ABA National Conference on Children and the Law - July 2011 Attending: Pending
July 2011 Children and Family Service Conference - CIP will sponsor one plenary session during
the conference and will make scholarships available for guardians ad litem to cover the cost of
registration.
Annual GAL Training - CIP will sponsor a full day of training for guardians ad litem in
conjunction with the Children and Family Service conference.
June 2011 - CIP will sponsor one plenary session at the State’s Attorney Association summer
training.
Fall 2011 Judicial Conference - A session related to Child Welfare for the judges will be
planned.
Webinars - There is a subscription to an online meeting and webinar service that will also include
the CIP subcommittees to meet online, and allow us to hold webinars related to child abuse and
neglect. The Education Committee will develop a series of programs to be presented during
2011/2012.
Data Collection and Analysis Sub-Committee - Karen Kringlie, Chair. Karen reported she is
in the process of replacing vacancies on this sub-committee. She has asked Tara Muhlhauser for
a representative from the Department of Human Services, preferably someone who works
directly with FRAME and has some knowledge to exchange data between the courts and DHS.
Karen will also be adding someone from the Education Department as well. Karen and Catie
Palsgraaf will be meeting to discuss targeted areas.
ICWA Sub-Committee - Judge Cresap and Connie Portscheller, Co-Chairs. Judge Cresap
asked for an updated list of the ICWA sub-committee members. This will be forwarded to
Connie. Assistance from Louie Hentzen and Catie Palsgraaf on what data has been collected
from the Kate Harrison Consulting Firm and what there is yet to complete with the data already
collected.
Lee Ann Barnhardt suggested to involve the ICWA sub-committee in future ICWA conferences
due to losing the substantive law portion of the conference. Lee Ann and Connie will meet with
Deb Painte to add more law based sessions in the conference.
Annual CIP meeting in Washington D.C.
The Court Improvement Project Committee annual meeting is scheduled May 9-10, 2011 for 1 ½
days. Five participants are funded to attend. Those attending are: Lee Ann Barnhardt, Catie
Palsgraaf, and Louie Hentzen. There are two spots to fill. Karen Kringlie and Judge Clapp are to
let Louie know if they will be attending.
Judicial Excellence in Child Abuse and Neglect Proceedings (ABA)
The Judicial Excellence in Child Abuse and Neglect Proceedings: Principles and Standards for
Court Organization, Judicial Selection and Assignment, Judicial Administration and Judicial
Education, which was approved by the American Bar Association on August 9, 2010 was
distributed.
Each section will need to be discussed in detail by the CIP committee. It was determined to hold
Four “go to” meetings with one section to be covered per meeting. Dates, Sections, and Times
are listed below.
Section A - April 15, 2011 - 12:00-1:30 p.m. - Dennis Herbeck and Dale Rivard Section B - April 29, 2011 - 12:00-1:30 p.m. - Robin Huseby and Karen Kringlie Section C - May 20, 2011 - 12:00-1:30 p.m. - Judge Clapp and Judge Reich Section D - June 10, 2011 - 12:00-1:30 p.m. - Lee Ann Barnhardt
A motion was made by Dennis Herbeck to adjourn the meeting. Robin Huseby seconded.
Meeting adjourned.