(d) No Special Selection of Magistrates

The Act contemplates (section 27 of 1925 and section 16 of 1927) that Magistrates shall be specially appointed to the Children’s Court.  In practice, however, all Magistrates have been given jurisdiction to sit in the Children’s Court.  As a result, the practice and procedure of the Court varies throughout the Dominion.

(e) Separate Court Buildings Not Used

The Act also contemplated that, when a Children’s Court was established, it should not be held in an ordinary Court building.  There is a provision that if a Court has not been established in any district the proceedings should be in a room other than the ordinary Court Room.

Serious complaints were made to the Committee that some children in the Hutt cases had to remain in the precincts of the Magistrate’s Court at Lower Hutt awaiting an opportunity for the cases as regards them to be called.  After the children and parents had waited about for a long time most of these cases were adjourned till another date, when again much the same sort of thing happened.  One special purpose of the Children’s Court was defeated by the fact that the Children’s Court in that city was held in the ordinary Court building.

(f) Should Proceedings be Open to the Press

There may be reasons why a Children’s Court should be open to the public even although the publication of names is prohibited.  Under section 30 press reporters may not attend a sitting of the Children’s Court unless “specially permitted or required by the Court to be present”.  It has often happened that a series of offences has created considerable apprehension in the public mind.  On investigation they have been found to be due to the work of a gang or to the influence of some definite adverse factor in the community.  The public has a right to know how child offenders have been dealt with.  The Committee does not recommend any alteration in the provision prohibiting the publication of the name of any child or of any name or particulars likely to lead to identification.  Subject to this, it is desirable that reporters should be allowed to attend.  The Court should not be a completely secret chamber, the decisions of which have to be gathered by rumour or by the seeking of information through interviews away from the Court.

(g) No Follow-up Procedure

When children are placed “under supervision” there is not any procedure whereby reports are submitted to the Court or other body concerning their welfare or their doings.  Again, when children are committed to the care of the State or are under supervision as a result of delinquency they may lawfully be transferred from one institution to another or may be boarded out in foster-homes without any intimation being made to their own parents.  If a child is boarded out in another district it may be enrolled at a school without the principal being given such information as might enable him to be of assistance in its reclamation.