Family Court
The judicial system of New York State had its foundation in the Dutch and English laws under which the colony had been living. The first constitution, adopted in 1777, accepted and recognized the common law then in existence and to which the people were accustomed. Subsequent constitutions made many changes in the state's judicial system, but it wasn't until 1824, when the state legislature incorporated the Society for the Reformation of Juvenile Delinquents, that children's issues began to be separated from adults. In 1865, the legislature passed the Disorderly Child Act. This was the first statute permitting the placement of children who had not been criminally convicted. In 1877, the Act for Protecting Children was enacted, becoming the state's first neglect statute.
Following special legislation in 1910, the Syracuse Children's Court was created as a section of the Court of Special Sessions. One of the first such courts in the state, it was created twelve years before the state-wide Children's Court was implemented. The first judge was the Hon. Benjamin J. Shove; he was given jurisdiction to provide detention and trial for offenders under sixteen whose crimes were not punishable by death or life imprisonment. The Court was initially held in an old residence on Willow Street and was subsequently held in several other locations, including the old City Hall. Hon. Leo Yehle took the helm of Children's Court in 1926 and began steps to improve court services, including careful recording of cases, banning the public from the Courtroom, and physical and psychological exams of the children. In January 1937, Children's Court moved to the Onondaga County Courthouse and became an independent entity with county-wide jurisdiction. For the period of 1937 to 1960, Judge Yehle's caseload increased from 1,718 cases to 3,563 cases per year. Due to this increased caseload, a second judge, Hon. Peter Kolakowski was appointed to the Children's Court in June 1961.
The New York State Family Court was established in September 1962, replacing the Children's Court and the Family Division of the Domestic Relations Court. Family Court was given original jurisdiction over the following types of proceedings: neglect, support, paternity, termination of custody by reason of permanent neglect, juvenile delinquency, persons-in-need-of-supervision, and family offenses. The Court was also authorized to hear support and custody applications in matrimonial actions referred from Supreme Court, and petitions concerning services for children with developmental disabilities. In addition to increasing the jurisdiction of the Court, the Family Court Act also declared that minors had the right to the assistance of counsel, thus the law guardian system was established.
| In recent years, Onondaga Family Court has seen caseloads averaging over 22,000 filings per year. Many changes have been made to implement new technology in records managment and information processing to enable the Court to efficiently handle this volume of cases. The Family Court of today continues to focus on the changing needs of the people it serves. |
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Courthouse
The first court held in Onondaga County, was a term of the common pleas, convened on the first Monday of May, 1794, in Gen. Asa Danforth’s corn house at Onondaga Hollow. The judge was Seth Phelps, who was assisted by Side Judges, John Richardson, Silas Hawley, and William Stevens. For several years subsequent courts were held in various homes or hotels throughout the area, until a courthouse was erected by the county.
The county’s first courthouse was located on Onondaga Hill, on the present site of the Onondaga Town Hall. The building was completed in 1807 at an approximate cost of $10,000.00. Courts were held there until 1830, when it was determined that the courthouse should be located more conveniently in either the larger village of Syracuse or in the prosperous village of Salina. Both villages offered sites for the new building; and, it was decided by compromise that the new courthouse would be located half-way between Syracuse and Salina.
The county’s second courthouse, located at Salina and Division Streets, was built in 1829-1830 at a cost of $27,000.00. It was a two story building made of brick with a separate stone building containing the jail. The court rooms were located on the second floor . The first floor was used as the jury room. Unfortunately, the compromise location of this courthouse was considered inconvenient and the building was considered too small. On January 5, 1856, the second courthouse was destroyed by a mysterious fire.
The third Onondaga County Courthouse was designed by Horatio Nelson White in an Anglo-Norman or Romanesque style. It was sited on the north side of Clinton Square where the Syracuse Newspapers building is now located. This courthouse was built of Onondaga limestone, from the Split Rock quarry, at a cost of approximately $38,000.00. The third courthouse was used by the courts and county offices for fifty years. However, by 1901 it became evident that a larger structure was needed for the growing county.
The architect chosen for the fourth courthouse was Archimedes Russell, a well-established local architect who also designed Crouse Memorial College and the Van Ranke Library (now the Tolley Administration Building), both at Syracuse University. Russell designed the new courthouse in the Beaux Arts style. The site for the new courthouse was originally in Clinton Square, but for political reasons was relocated to Columbus Circle. Construction began in 1904 and the building was completed in 1907 at a cost of $1,400,000.00. Although quite expensive for that time period, the building was so magnificent that few complained about the expense.
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Local History Links
Onondaga Department of Corrections Historical Information
http://www.ongov.net/correction/history.html
Onondaga County Public Library History Links
http://www.onlib.org/web/lh/links.htm
Onondaga County Historical Association
http://www.cnyhistory.org/
Syracuse History
http://www.syracuse.ny.us/Historic_Syracuse.aspx
Syracuse Then and Now
http://www.syracusethenandnow.net/
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