Family Case Management

Family Case Management

The involvement of family and community in holding the offender accountable and restoring hozho is a traditional justice concept toward a comprehensive solution.  The concept is gaining use in the American justice system, specifically, involving family and community in supervision plans and addressing family dysfunction that may impede the offender’s successful completion of a probation or parole period. 

Family Case Management (FCM) in the Navajo Nation is presently being tested and developed as part of the Pilot Project. At this time, FCM applies only in the Pilot Project.

The Chief Probation Officer may expand FCM testing and development to other district PPS offices at any time prior to completion of the Pilot Project without need for further amendment of these Standard Operating procedures.

Developing Family Case Management

Family Case Management will involve adult and juvenile supervision planning for probation and reentry; and assistance to families for financial, educational, vocational, and health needs. 

The Chief Probation Officer, Senior Probation Officer, and Peacemaker Liaison are responsible for developing FCM as follows:

  1. Locate and list all services and resources by priority need.  Identify the services and resources available to take care of a family’s financial, educational, vocational and health needs.  Prioritize services and resources that would best serve the offender and his/her family in order to ensure successful completion of probation, successful reentry, and restoration of hozho.
  2. Begin outreach to services.  Perform outreach and establish partnerships with programs providing the services and resources by order of priority.
  3. Memoranda of Agreement.  With the assistance of Judicial Branch administration and attorneys, draft Memoranda of Agreements to cement cross-program partnerships.
  4. Share facilities.  Allocate facilities space where needed by services to perform their functions pursuant to the MOAs.
  5. Present and listen to the Public.  Listen to public needs by making presentations on Family Case Management at chapters and agency meetings, make suggestions, and obtain feedback as to how communities can participate.
  6. Establish FCM procedures.
  7. Plan FCMs.  Create Family Case Management plans that are tailored to the judicial district with input from court, PPS and Peacemaking Program judicial district staff and other programs, services, and resources.  Assist the Court Administrator in their annual budget and strategic planning for FCM needs.
  8. Juvenile needs assessment.  Pending formal FCM plans and procedures, the PPO shall do a needs assessment of the juvenile’s family, including listing what programs are presently assisting the family.  The needs assessment shall include the juvenile’s clan, chapter, number and occupations of family members and a family history of recidivism and dependency. 
  9. Adult questionnaire. The Probation Officer shall note down the client-offender’s answers to the following:

(a)          A narrative of his/her clan, chapter, family and relationships since childhood, including where the offender has resided, with whom, and for how long.

(b)          What the offender thinks about clans, communities and families.

(c)          Whether he/she would prefer to obtain justice in the court system or face the clan and family.

(d)          What he/she thinks would restore hozho.

  1. Monthly reports.  A copy of the needs assessment shall be given to the Chief Probation Officer on a monthly basis for foundational purposes.  A copy of the adult questionnaires shall be given to the Chief Probation Officer on a monthly basis.
  2. Partnering with Peacemaker Liaison.  The Probation Officer may partner with the Peacemaker Liaison whenever necessary to facilitate family conferences to discuss the juvenile’s needs.  In addition, the Probation Officer may partner with the Peacemaker Liaison to facilitate family conferences to discuss an adult offender’s needs where the offender has consented. 
  3. Family input.   Family input into the supervision plan should be sought whenever possible.