(P) Family Court

Excerpts of an interesting article that reminds me of a fact: I cannot control my children and their choices:

Nassau County (NY) Family Court Judge Richard Lawrence of Merrick sees a lot of kids in his courtroom...The court's objective is not to punish as much as it is to help young people get the help they need so they never commit their crimes again. Lawyers call juvenile-delinquent cases "quasi-criminal."

Lawrence plans to run for his second 10-year term on the bench in 2007. "You can really make a difference" as a Family Court judge, he says. "You can do things that parents can't do or don't think of," such as drug testing. "We have all the people right here who can do things right away. You can really get to the root of a problem, and then you keep your fingers crossed."

We can train them up, but we cannot keep them from doing wrong.

If my kids ever mess up, I hope a Judge Lawrence is in their court.