HARRISBURG (June 2, 2004) � The Pennsylvania Bar Association Children�s Rights Committee presented a 2004 Child Advocate of the Year Award to York County Court of Common Pleas Senior Judge Emmanuel Cassimatis during the association�s Annual Meeting in Hershey May 13-15.

The Child Advocate of the Year Award was established to recognize the accomplishments of lawyers and judges who are advocates for children within the commonwealth or who are involved with child advocacy.

�Judge Cassimatis has been deeply involved in matters of importance regarding juveniles not only in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, but throughout the world,� said York County Court of Common Pleas President Judge Arthur E. Grim, who nominated him for the award. �It is the passion and commitment to children which he brings to the table that is quite extraordinary.�

Throughout his career, Judge Cassimatis has been a leading advocate for children. He serves as the president of the Pennsylvania Conference of State Trial Judges Juvenile Court Section and is a member of the Pennsylvania Permanency Planning Task Force. He chairs the Ad Hoc Committee on the Mental Health Needs of Juvenile Offenders and is a member of the Pennsylvania Commission of Crime and Delinquency (PCCD) Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Committee. From 1991-1994, Judge Cassimatis was the convener of Pennsylvania�s Juvenile Justice Policy Group. This group is comprised of the secretaries of the Pennsylvania departments of Education, Health and Welfare and the Commissioner of Corrections and the Executive Director of PCCD. Judge Cassimatis also was a member and chair of the Juvenile Court Judges� Commission from 1989-1998.

In addition, Judge Cassimatis was selected as one of five jurists worldwide to serve on the International Tribunal for Children�s Rights. He serves with judges from Brazil, Kenya, Poland and Thailand and conducts hearings on war-affected children.

To assist children in York County, Judge Cassimatis established the Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) Program, which utilizes trained community members to serve as advocates for abused and neglected children. He also founded the EARN-IT Program, which targets delinquent youth, ages 14-18, and enables them to earn money to pay for the damages caused by their offenses. Judge Cassimatis also chaired the Safe Kids Initiative.

Judge Cassimatis is a graduate of Dickinson College and the Penn State Dickinson School of Law.