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Family court navigator seeks $250,000 to fund counseling, navigation services for high‑conflict families
Summary
Judge Reddy and family navigator Candace Brown presented results from a pilot family navigation program and asked the county to fund $250,000 to continue and expand services that link families to counseling, supervised visitation, and other supports aimed at reducing recidivism into family and juvenile courts.
Judge Reddy and family court navigator Candace Brown asked the county budget panel for $250,000 to continue and expand a family navigation program that pairs assessments and navigator follow‑up with counseling and other services for families involved in high‑conflict divorce or family court proceedings.
Judge Reddy framed the request with national and local figures comparing the long‑term cost of incarceration and child welfare to early intervention, and said the county is already seeing early wins from the program. She told the committee the program requires three types of intake assessments — a biopsychosocial assessment for adults and a child and adolescent trauma screen for children — and that clinician referrals are selected from an approved provider list. "We're seeing real success stories," she said, and noted attorneys who initially resisted mandatory services now ask for them to be ordered.
Candace Brown, the court’s family navigator, described several program successes without identifying clients: families who completed supervised visits and counseling and have not returned to court, and a caregiver who received wraparound services after taking guardianship of children who were victims of abuse. "The children received counseling, connected to school based services, and provided wrap around services for the guardian," Brown said. She said the navigator role secures appointments quickly — often within two weeks — and helps families stay engaged through court review and accountability.
Program costs requested include clinical fees (individual and family counseling), supervised visit expenses, transportation and health insurance copays when applicable; Judge Reddy said the program recoups insurance where possible and uses county funds for gaps. The request also funds the navigator role and related coordination.
Ending: The judge and navigator said they would supply the committee with the program's outcome tracking details that are already kept in court records, and asked the council to consider the $250,000 appropriation as prevention spending that the presenters argued can reduce later costs in juvenile and criminal systems.
