Frequently Asked Questions

A CASA volunteer is an officer of the court.  A judge appoints a special advocate, as mandated in SDCL 26-8A-20, to represent the best interest of an abused or neglected child in court proceedings. A CASA volunteer provides a judge with carefully researched background details about the child to help the court make a sound decision about that child's future.  Each home placement case is as unique as the child involved.  The CASA volunteer makes a recommendation on placement to the judge and follows through on the case until it is permanently resolved.

To prepare a recommendation, the CASA volunteer talks with the child, parents, family members, social workers, school officials, health providers and others who are knowledgeable about the child's history.  The CASA volunteer also reviews all records pertaining to the child-school, medical, case worker reports and other documents.

Social workers generally are employed by state governments sometimes working on as many as 60 to 90 cases at a time; they are frequently unable to conduct a comprehensive investigation of each case. The CASA volunteer has more time and a smaller caseload (average of 1-2 cases) to investigate a case.  The CASA volunteer does not replace a social worker on a case; they are an independent appointee of the court.  The CASA volunteer thoroughly examines a child's case, knows about various community resources and makes recommendations to the court independent of state agency restrictions.

The CASA volunteer does not provide legal representation in the courtroom-that is the role of the attorney. However, the CASA volunteer does provide crucial background information that assists attorneys in presenting their cases.  It is important to remember that CASA volunteers do not represent a child's wishes in court, rather, they speak for the child's best interests.

CASA volunteers come from all walks of life and possess a variety of professional, educational and ethnic backgrounds.  There are more than 70,000 CASA volunteers nationally. Local programs vary in number of volunteers they utilize.  Aside from their CASA volunteer work, 64 percent are employed in full- or part-time jobs; the majority tends to be professionals with 58% college or university graduates.  The majority (82%) of the volunteers nationwide are women.

CASA volunteers offer children trust and advocacy during complex legal proceedings.  They help explain to the child the events happening involving the case, reasons they are in court and the roles of the judge, lawyers and case workers.  While remaining objective observers, CASA volunteers also encourage the child to express his or her own opinion and hopes about the case.

An average caseload is one to two.

Yes. Juvenile and family court judges implement the CASA program in their courtrooms and appoint volunteers.  CASA has been endorsed by the American Bar Association, the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges, and the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention of the U.S. Department of Justice.