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Judge Cheryl Lee Shannon, 305th District Court. I was first elected in 1994 and re-elected in 1998 and 2002. It has been a phenomenal 11 years and I look forward to serving you for another term.
The 305th District Court is designated as one of the two Juvenile Courts in Dallas County. We hear cases involving youth who are alleged to have committed criminal offenses (delinquent conduct) and cases referred from the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (child abuse cases). There is not one idle moment in the work day of our Court.
It has been a tremendous challenge to find appropriate solutions for the youth of this County that engage in delinquent conduct as well as safe solutions for those children who have been removed from their homes because of abuse and neglect. My Court has met this challenge head on making sure that the needs of the youth and children are met as well as the community being protected.
The 305th virtually has no backlog of cases. For youth in custody, juvenile delinquency cases are typically resolved within 45 to 60 days of the youth being taken into custody and for the youth not in custody their cases are typically resolved within 60 to 120 days of their initial Court appearance. Our child abuse and neglect cases (as mandated by statute) typically are resolved within one year of the child entering foster care. The model for the one-year statute was a direct result of the pattern set by our Court.
In addition to presiding over the Court, I serve on several Boards and Commissions. I was appointed in 2004 by Governor Perry to serve on the Texas Juvenile Probation Commission and appointed in 2005 by Governor Perry as the Chairman of the Commission. I also currently serve as the Chairman of the Dallas County Juvenile Board.
I have formerly served on the Texas School Safety Center Board as Governor Perry’s appointee; Texas CASA; Target Kids in Court; Dallas County Truancy Coordination Board and many more.
I have received tremendous support from the community over the years and look forward to and appreciate even greater support in the upcoming years. There is still much to be accomplished in the lives of our youth and children and I look forward to the opportunity of continued service.
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