PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Wills, Cheryl D.
TI  - Post-Katrina Juvenile Competency Determinations: A Tale of Two Systems
DP  - 2008 Jun 01
TA  - Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online
PG  - 234--239
VI  - 36
IP  - 2
4099  - http://jaapl.org/content/36/2/234.short
4100  - http://jaapl.org/content/36/2/234.full
SO  - J Am Acad Psychiatry Law2008 Jun 01; 36
AB  - 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.