Where Healing Takes Root Session - The Art of the Poker Face: Professional Courtroom Presence for CASA

The presentation provides essential guidance for child welfare advocates, legal professionals, and Court-Appointed Special Advocates (CASAs) to navigate the complexities of courtroom testimony in child abuse and neglect proceedings. The Honorable Perri DeChristopher, Circuit Court Judge and former prosecutor, shares practical strategies focused on meticulous case documentation, handling subpoenas, managing courtroom fear, and mastering the core pillars of effective witness presentation. Viewers gain insights into delivering clear, credible evidence on the witness stand to ensure judges have the detailed facts necessary to make high-stakes permanency decisions for vulnerable children.

Presenter

The Honorable Perri DeChristopher

Chief Judge 21st Judicial Circuit, Monongalia County

The Honorable Perri DeChristopher is Chief Judge of the 21st Judicial Circuit Court in Monongalia County. She was appointed by former Governor Jim Justice to fill a judicial vacancy on December 20, 2022, and took office on January 27, 2023. She was subsequently elected to said position in May of 2024. Judge DeChristopher has been appointed to sit as a member of the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals on two occasions.

Prior to her judicial career, Judge DeChristopher was the Chief Assistant Prosecuting Attorney in Monongalia County, beginning in 2000. She was elected as the Prosecuting Attorney of Monongalia County in 2016 and again in 2020.

Judge DeChristopher is a West Virginia Bar Foundation Fellow. She was previously appointed by the Governor to the Sexual Assault Forensic Examination (SAFE) Commission (2016-2022), and was the Vice-Chairperson of West Virginia Sentencing Commission, under the Governor's Committee on Crime, Delinquency and Correction (2021). She was designated by the WV Supreme Court as a member of the WV State Bar Character Committee (2020-2022). She was previously a Board Member of Mon General Hospital and currently serves as a Board Member for Your Community Foundation of North Central West Virginia (YCF).