Juvenile Justice

Benton-Franklin Counties Juvenile Justice Center

Monday–Friday 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Closed: 12:00 noon to 1:00 p.m.
General Phone Number: 509-783-2151

5606 W. Canal Dr., Suite 106
Kennewick, WA 99336
Phone: (509) 783-2151
Fax: (509) 736-2728

ATTENTION:

During inclement weather, please check the Benton-Franklin Counties Superior Court website for any court delays or closures.

Inclement Weather

Attention Please:

THE FOLLOWING ARE PROHIBITED IN THE COURTROOM:

• Weapons
• Shorts
• Revealing/Offensive Attire
• Tank Tops
• Sunglasses
• Cellular Phones
• Food/Drink

Please visit this site regularly as information is changing as we work toward a final solution.

Participating Via WebEx

Updates to Superior Court Webex Practices

In the afternoon of Tuesday, April 8, 2025, and again on Wednesday, April 9, 2025, a public participant unmuted themselves during all active Webex meetings being used to facilitate Superior Court hearings in both Benton and Franklin Counties, and caused to be displayed inappropriate material. From news reporting, it is the Court’s understanding that this happened in courts across the state, and has continued to happen nationwide on Zoom and Webex platforms.

In response to this situation and in consultation with our staff and County IT department, and by majority vote of the seven judges of the Benton and Franklin County Superior Court, we have chosen to move forward, effective April 22, 2025, as follows:

• We will allow attorneys and litigants who have matters on the docket to use Webex for all dockets with the following new rules in place:
  • All litigants and attorneys on Webex must use their first and last name in their account. The name for a litigant must match the name on the docket. We will not let anyone in the meeting who is not using a full name, or who is using a name that does not match a name on that docket.
  • Litigants must include their case number along with their first and last name in their title.
  • Attorneys must include the word “attorney” before or after their first and last name.
  • Any participant needing to participate by Webex using only a phone number must obtain permission from the court seven (7) calendar days in advance of all matters, except Civil Protection Orders and Unlawful Detainers which require three (3) calendar days advance notice, using this form:

Request for Exception to Appear Remotely or Telephonically

• • The Judicial Assistant will not let anyone in the meeting from the virtual lobby after the docket has started or after roll call if the Judicial Officer takes roll. If a participant joins Webex late, they will not be let in the meeting. This allows our JAs to focus on their courtroom duties once the docket has started, while still offering remote access for participants.
    • Exceptions to this rule will not be made for attorneys who double-book themselves in multiple courtrooms or counties. They have the option to appear in person or reschedule matters at their discretion.
  • Judicial Assistants will have discretion to remove anyone from the Webex meeting if that person is disruptive, or at the direction of the judicial officer.
  • Judicial Assistants, at the direction of the judicial officer, may allow some participants in the Webex room after the docket has started for the convenience of the court or administration of justice, such as interpreters, DOC, or jail staff.
  • As always, any person participating on Webex must follow the same rules for dress and decorum as if they were present in-person in the Courtroom. Any attorney or participant not properly dressed, or who is disruptive, offensive or otherwise contemptuous on Webex will be removed from the meeting and may face other sanctions. 
  • In-person appearances are still mandatory for all settlement conferences, evidentiary hearings and trials, and as otherwise directed by the Court, unless permission is granted in advance for a party or attorney to appear remotely. Requests to appear remotely for evidentiary hearings and trials, or to have witnesses appear remotely, must be made by way of a motion.

Request for Exception to Appear Remotely or Telephonically

Permission will be granted for emergencies and extreme hardships only.

• We will begin offering a livestream of court proceedings -- except CPO matters, any juvenile court matters, and trials -- as soon as possible. This may take up to a month to implement.  Until livestreaming is available, victims may request access to the interactive Webex room by seeking court approval no less than seven (7) calendar days prior to the scheduled hearing and can be requested here:

Request for Exception to Appear Remotely or Telephonically

For those who are not parties or attorneys listed on the docket, court proceedings remain open for in-person attendance.

Benton Franklin Juvenile Court Hearings

• Juvenile Courtroom 1
• WebEx Video Conferencing 
• WebEx Web link: https://bentoncounty.webex.com/meet/jjcourtroom1
• WebEx Meeting Number: 146 563 0920
• WebEx by Telephone
• Call in #: (408) 418-9388
• Enter the above WebEx Meeting number, followed by #
• Instead of entering an "Attendee ID Number", press #

Mission Statement

It is the mission of the Benton-Franklin Counties Juvenile Justice Center to advance the safety and well-being of our community by reducing juvenile at-risk and criminal behavior and the abuse and neglect of children. The Benton-Franklin Counties Juvenile Court and its Juvenile Justice Center is a branch of the Superior Court.

The Benton-Franklin Counties Juvenile Court has exclusive jurisdiction over those juveniles within Benton and Franklin Counties who violate the criminal laws of the State, who are in need of protection and/or advocacy as a result of abuse, neglect, or abandonment, or who are brought to the attention of the court through a civil petition process for at-risk behavior or truancy.

Benton-Franklin Juvenile Offender Court Flowchart

The Juvenile Justice Center is responsible for the provision of diversion, community supervision (probation), court, secure detention, and work crew services.

Benton-Franklin Counties Juvenile Court Schedule

Superior Court Juvenile has an email specifically for Requests for Interpreters.  Please email ALL interpreter requests to jj.dependency@co.benton.wa.us. Several people in Legal Process Unit are on this email, so a request will be seen promptly.

A request for interpreter should be made as far in advance as practical for a hearing, but not less than 5 business days prior to the scheduled date.  It is extremely difficult to schedule an interpreter, especially for languages other than Spanish.  All of our dockets have a Spanish Interpreter scheduled to cover those matters. 

Interpreters needed for trial must be made when the trial is called ready at the Trial Readiness/Trial Priority Docket.

Juvenile Justice Center
5606 W. Canal Drive
Suite 106
Kennewick, WA 99336