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Hush, Little Baby, Don't Say A Word: How Seeking The "Best Interests Of The Child" Fostered A Lack Of Accountability In Georgia's Juvenile Courts, Sarah Gerwig-Moore, Leigh S. Schrope

Mercer Law Review

Since 1899, when America's first juvenile court opened its doors to the lost children of Chicago, two primary assumptions have governed the administration of the juvenile justice system: that it should operate in parens patriae for the "best interests of the child"' and that it should be given flexibility and leeway in doing so. Georgia's juvenile courts, established in 1908, function squarely within that framework: "[a] petition alleging delinquency, deprivation, or unruliness of a child shall not be filed unless the court or a person authorized by the court has determined and endorsed upon the petition that the filing of …