Juvenile courts consider opening

Bessie Brooker thought the boy who beat her great-granddaughter to death in 2001 was locked up, until she read that not only was Anthony Joe Jr. free, he was accused of killing someone else.

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Kendrick Brinson/Staff

Taj'sha was beaten to death in 2001 by then-12-year-old Anthony Joe Jr., who was arrested again this year in the shooting death of David Reader, a cellist for the Augusta Symphony.

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Kendrick Brinson/Staff

Bessie Brooker looks out on the graveyard where her great-granddaughter, Taj'sha Adams, is buried. Taj'sha died at 17 months old in December 2001, and Ms. Brooker did not attend the closed juvenile court proceedings for the 12-year-old responsible for the death.

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Kendrick Brinson/Staff

The tombstone of Taj'sha Adams is pictured. Her grandmother said she forgave the child's killer for his youth.

The juvenile court proceedings in 2001 were closed to the public and conducted by then-Judge Herbert Kernaghan. It bothered Miss Brooker because she wasn't sure Mr. Joe, then 12 years old, was capable of inflicting the physical injuries on 17-month-old Taj'sha Sierra Adams that left her brain dead.

Maybe someone else was responsible, she thought. But she never got to hear any of the evidence.

The case of another 12-year-old accused of a horrible crime will be different because current juvenile court judges in the Augusta Judicial Circuit favor opening the court up as much as possible.

Juvenile Court Judge Pam James has opened the disposition for Coreon A. Jackson and will hear from witnesses and attorneys today before deciding what to do with him.

The boy is accused of taking part in a home invasion in which Roosevelt Cowins, 65, was shot to death in his Fenwick Street home March 19.

Mr. Cowins' sister, who lived with him, might be among the witnesses who testify. Not only will she be able to tell the judge what happened the night her brother was killed, but she also will be allowed to tell the judge about her brother and the effect his death has had.

In 2001, the media were not able to attend any of the juvenile court proceedings for Mr. Joe, but earlier this year, after his new arrest on murder charges, Juvenile Court Judge H. William Sams granted The Augusta Chronicle access to Mr. Joe's juvenile court records.

State law allows juvenile court judges to open hearings for juveniles accused of committing the most violent of crimes and hearings for juveniles who have a criminal history. Some juvenile court matters remain closed, such as those dealing with abused or neglected children and parental rights.

Although the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges passed a resolution in 2005 in support of opening juvenile proceedings -- as long as judges have discretion to close certain cases to protect children -- only 17 states have passed such laws.

South Carolina has opened all juvenile delinquency court hearings, although judges retain the right to close hearings for good cause, said Sarah Smith of the Children's Law Center of South Carolina.

Proposed changes to Georgia's laws governing juvenile court proceedings, which will be presented to the General Assembly in its upcoming session, do not advocate opening the court up further because it is still an issue for debate.

But individual judges, including those in the Augusta Judicial Circuit, have begun to open juvenile court proceedings when the law allows it.

"I think it will make it better. I think the public needs to know what is going on," Judge Doug Flanagan said.

The law allows public access to final court proceedings when juveniles are accused of one of the state's seven deadly sins, such as murder, Judge Flanagan said.

Deciding when to open other hearings is up to individual judges. If it's a burglary case, he would probably want to keep it closed because the emphasis should be on rehabilitating the child, Judge Flanagan said.

But if it's a serious crime he believes the public has the right to know.

Victims, in particular, need to come to court to give victim-impact statements, Judge Flanagan said.

He even issues summonses for victims of minor traffic accidents involving juveniles.

In 2001, Taj'sha's maternal grandmother, Gloria Daniels, went to Mr. Joe's juvenile court deposition hearing. He was so young when Taj'sha was killed, she forgave him. He promised nothing like that would happen again, Ms. Daniels said.

She also thought Mr. Joe was still in a detention center until she heard he had been arrested in the May 11 slaying of Augusta Symphony cellist David Reader.

"I almost had another attack. It's been a hurtful thing," Ms. Daniels said of the new arrest.

The law in 2001 dictated a maximum confinement of up to five years in a juvenile facility because Mr. Joe was under 13.

The law was changed in 2006 so that a juvenile as young as 10 who is accused of committing a homicide can be detained until his 21st birthday.

Reach Sandy Hodson at (706) 823-3226 or sandy.hodson@augustachronicle.com.