• FreeAdvice has a new Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, effective May 25, 2018.
    By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our Terms of Service and use of cookies.

Juvenile Court Records

Accident - Bankruptcy - Criminal Law / DUI - Business - Consumer - Employment - Family - Immigration - Real Estate - Tax - Traffic - Wills   Please click a topic or scroll down for more.

Status
Not open for further replies.

dlw99

Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Massachusetts

My family recently settled a longstanding dispute with a group of individuals who have been harassing us for years.

A judgment in juvenile court finally stopped these people in their tracks from the overtly cruel and violent behavior they were happily engaged in.

I have been approached by a national news show to tell my story, which is being written by an author in another state. I initially rejected the idea and am still leaning against it, although I am reconsidering.

Question: If I choose to go on national television with my story, what, if any part of the trial proceedings from Juvenile court would I be free to discuss?
 
Last edited:


you can talk about whatever you want to talk about. Any slander /libel issues would be for you to deal with of course. The confidentiality of Juvi cases pertains to public agencies dealing with the case, not the people involved.
 

dlw99

Member
you can talk about whatever you want to talk about. Any slander /libel issues would be for you to deal with of course. The confidentiality of Juvi cases pertains to public agencies dealing with the case, not the people involved.
Are juvenile court cases public record?
 

dlw99

Member
Not in CA. I would check your state laws. But if they are confidential it doesnt mean that a party in the case isnt allowed to talk about it. That would apply to the agencies and how they deal with the case.
I hear you about the agencies. I am just amazed that the court handed me SSNs of four little kids on their restraining orders. I would feel strange handing those over to the producer of a national tv show.

The transcripts specifically say -not for entertainment purposes- on the disc, but they are asking for it anyway.

The kids and their parents have mercilessly harassed us for years, but my gut says it would be wrong to hand out that type of information.
 

dlw99

Member
Thanks. I expected to take a beating from the vultures on this one, so I appreciate your responses. Do you know how I can find out if this matter is public record or not? I was under the impression, and you have enlightened me, that everything in juvenile court was sealed.

For example, when I minor commits a crime, they do not publish his name in the newspaper. Why is that?=

I know absolutely nothing about juvenile court - hopefully my recent experience was my first and last.
 

dlw99

Member
Thanks. I just checked out the link, and it specifically said under these circumstances children's names can be published. yikes. The youngest kid was in kindergarten when the order was issued in June.

Our lawyer had very little experience in Juvenile Court, and cautioned me about publicizing the trial because he said that all juvenile records are sealed.
Obviously this is not the case. Thanks for the direction, S.

Now that I know I can legally talk about it, I'll have to decide if it is the right thing to do. Even though the children involved are mean sprited bullies like their parents, they are still children. I cannot decide if it would help or hurt the situation to publicize it.

This matter was highly publicized locally with me as the villian. Years of legal wrangling proved the oppisite was true, but this fact has not made the local papers or blogs yet. (The problem became a political issue at one time, which is why it made the papers.)

Now I am being aggressively pursued to tell my story on national television, which would be the ultimiate last word on the subject. However it was the wild 2 1/2 hour scene in Juvenile court with four little bullies that finally shut down the harassment. That is the juicy part of the story they want to hear all about.

As much as I hate what these people have done to us, my gut says not to blast those brats on national tv. Thanks for the legal advice. The moral question will have to be answered by my family at the kitchen table.:confused:
 

HighwayMan

Super Secret Senior Member
You were really thinking about going on Jerry Springer (or equivalent) so you can look like all the other trailer trash idiots on those shows? I don't understand why anyone would want to do that.
 

quincy

Senior Member
dlw99, in your very first post to this forum, you were concerned with the publication of information about your son that was taken from a court proceeding. You wanted to know how you could protect your son by having this information removed from the website where it appeared, and how you could have the court records sealed to protect your son in the future.

Why you would even consider putting other children in the same situation that you found your son in is beyond me.

I recommend you follow the "gut" instinct you had in your Posts #5 and #9. If you think you looked like a "villain" in the court hearings, you can expect to look even more like one if you decide to publish facts about young children on television (whether it is a supposed "news" show airing these facts or not).

The matter was handled in court. You got your vindication. Leave it at that.
 
Last edited:

dlw99

Member
You were really thinking about going on Jerry Springer (or equivalent) so you can look like all the other trailer trash idiots on those shows? I don't understand why anyone would want to do that.
It's a weekly national network news show, and the matter that has distracted me for five years is one that affects millions of Americans to varying degrees. I would be appearing with an author who is already published on the subject to discuss what happens to people's lives when they experience this kind of nightmare. This would be the second time the author has appeared on the show.

I've said no to the offer twice already, but I am revisiting the idea.
 

dlw99

Member
dlw99, in your very first post to this forum, you were concerned with the publication of information about your son that was taken from a court proceeding. You wanted to know how you could protect your son by having this information removed from the website where it appeared, and how you could have the court records sealed to protect your son in the future.

Why you would even consider putting other children in the same situation that you found your son in is beyond me.

I recommend you follow the "gut" instinct you had in your Posts #5 and #9. If you think you looked like a "villain" in the court hearings, you can expect to look even more like one if you decide to publish facts about young children on television (whether it is a supposed "news" show airing these facts or not).

The matter was handled in court. You got your vindication. Leave it at that.
My concern in my first post, which had zero responses, was that the defendants and their rabid parents might find the info online ahead of the trial. Now that it's over and we have succeeded, I don't care who finds the post. My son was at the center of this mess, and the judge made him feel like a hero for coming forward.

Big Bullies raise little bullies. You haven't walked in my shoes, and have no idea how these animals affected my family's life, which was joyful and thankful before we met these freaks. Mercifully, we are returning to a better quality of life these days.

My skin has gotten very thick, and I couldn't give a tinker's damn about being portrayed as a villian in my tiny town.....again.

The reason I am re-considering the show is because of the education it might give to millions of families about how to handle bullies, that they come from all walks of life, shapes, sizes and ages, and how, with the rapid advancement in technology, can bully your kid from cyberspace.

These people are white, upper middle class, live in a nice home with a perfectly manicured lawn, drive late model cars, and are the meanest spirited people any of us have ever encountered.

We had a recent case in Massachusetts of a beautiful teenage girl who moved here from Ireland with her family and ended up committing suicide after she was bullied in her neighborhood, at school, and on the internet. Like with my family, the police did nothing, the school did nothing, and the neighbors did nothing to put a stop to it. Our bully laws are finally beginning to catch up with our technology and reality.

Despite the HPOs, the children involved are still (but not as overtly) trying to intimidate my family. This is why I'm reconsidering. I am sick of dealing with the police and the courts. They would never live down a beating on national television. I have loads of video and other documentation that would make the story salacious enough for the program, which is why they want it.

We are still being harassed by -agents- of the kids. When our lawyer asked me which boxes on the form I wanted to check, I was so emotionally exhausted from the trial that I did not have the presence of mind to check the box that included agents of the defendants. I just checked the general ''do not abuse'' box.

While we had sucess in court and life is more peaceful, I have been assured by the bullies that it won't remain that way for long. Cops, social agencies, and mediation services have all proved useless.

This mess started with public humiliation, and it could easily end with public humiliation in a harmonic karmic fashion.

Still, I do have reservations about blasting the baby bullies, and can't do the show without it. I didn't give the author or producers much hope that I would change my mind, but as you can see by my long winded post, I am giving it honest reconsideration.
 

acmb05

Senior Member
My concern in my first post, which had zero responses, was that the defendants and their rabid parents might find the info online ahead of the trial. Now that it's over and we have succeeded, I don't care who finds the post. My son was at the center of this mess, and the judge made him feel like a hero for coming forward.

Big Bullies raise little bullies. You haven't walked in my shoes, and have no idea how these animals affected my family's life, which was joyful and thankful before we met these freaks. Mercifully, we are returning to a better quality of life these days.

My skin has gotten very thick, and I couldn't give a tinker's damn about being portrayed as a villian in my tiny town.....again.

The reason I am re-considering the show is because of the education it might give to millions of families about how to handle bullies, that they come from all walks of life, shapes, sizes and ages, and how, with the rapid advancement in technology, can bully your kid from cyberspace.

These people are white, upper middle class, live in a nice home with a perfectly manicured lawn, drive late model cars, and are the meanest spirited people any of us have ever encountered.

We had a recent case in Massachusetts of a beautiful teenage girl who moved here from Ireland with her family and ended up committing suicide after she was bullied in her neighborhood, at school, and on the internet. Like with my family, the police did nothing, the school did nothing, and the neighbors did nothing to put a stop to it. Our bully laws are finally beginning to catch up with our technology and reality.

Despite the HPOs, the children involved are still (but not as overtly) trying to intimidate my family. This is why I'm reconsidering. I am sick of dealing with the police and the courts. They would never live down a beating on national television. I have loads of video and other documentation that would make the story salacious enough for the program, which is why they want it.

We are still being harassed by -agents- of the kids. When our lawyer asked me which boxes on the form I wanted to check, I was so emotionally exhausted from the trial that I did not have the presence of mind to check the box that included agents of the defendants. I just checked the general ''do not abuse'' box.

While we had sucess in court and life is more peaceful, I have been assured by the bullies that it won't remain that way for long. Cops, social agencies, and mediation services have all proved useless.

This mess started with public humiliation, and it could easily end with public humiliation in a harmonic karmic fashion.

Still, I do have reservations about blasting the baby bullies, and can't do the show without it. I didn't give the author or producers much hope that I would change my mind, but as you can see by my long winded post, I am giving it honest reconsideration.
Do it and then any monies made from it you can donate to a cause for bullied children. That should clear your mind.
 

quincy

Senior Member
A slight correction, dlw99. Your first post to this forum did get responses - several - but perhaps this case involving your son is different than the one where your son's counseling information was being published online by a mentally disturbed woman?

I certainly understand the need to put certain issues before the public. You have no idea how well I understand this need. Bullying and cyber bullying are issues that need discussing and review. However, I do not support and will never support putting young lives on display for others to judge (outside a courtroom), especially when the display is to occur on a nationally broadcast television show.

In addition, I believe that you risk your son becoming an even greater target for bullies if you decide to publicize your case in this manner - and he will become not just a target in your local community but nationwide. Right or wrong, that is the nature of becoming a "public figure" in our country. Your case may indeed help to illustrate the effects of bullying and why bullying needs to be addressed in states through the passage of bullying laws. But this could be at the expense of the child you were earlier trying so hard to protect.

I see no plusses to this, dwl99, but obviously the choice is yours to make.
 
Last edited:
Status
Not open for further replies.

Find the Right Lawyer for Your Legal Issue!

Fast, Free, and Confidential
data-ad-format="auto">
Top