They're too young to speak on their own behalf, so the Children's Attorney Project is doing it for them.

Project lead attorney Stephanie Charter appeared before Clark County Family Court Hearing Master Frank Sullivan on Friday and declared the group's intention to represent infants and toddlers in 10 abuse or neglect cases connected by one factor.

All the children involved have been kept for prolonged periods at hospital nurseries or at Child Haven, the county's emergency shelter for juveniles who have been removed from parental custody.

"It's not acceptable for any of these kids to be at Child Haven," said Charter, who added that federal and state laws require children in government care to be placed in the most familylike settings possible.

"They're in institutions, in Child Haven," Charter said. "Those are not familylike settings at all."

The Children's Attorney Project is part of the not-for-profit Clark County Legal Services.

As Sullivan reviewed the 10 cases the Children's Attorney Project named in its notice of intent, it became clear that several of the minors involved have been at the county shelter for periods ranging from 60 to 80 days.

"How could she be at Child Haven more than 60 days without a petition?" Sullivan said at one point, when it appeared that paperwork was missing from the court file of one female minor.

The 10 cases mark the start of an effort to represent all children 2 years old or younger who are in institutional care, Charter said. As of the first week in September, when the project first announced it would take this action, that population was 58.

Hospitals are holding the infants whom Child Haven has no room to accommodate. That situation began in June when the county issued a hold on hospital referrals for abuse or neglect because other placements were unavailable.

Deputy District Attorney Amy Mastin Jelinek objected to the project's motion of intent to represent the minors, saying client-directed advocacy is impossible in these cases because the children are nonverbal. "They can't be the mouthpiece of children who can't speak," Jelinek said.

Jelinek also pointed out that the court maintains oversight of the cases in question with regular status hearings. In some cases, children at Child Haven are there because the court has ordered them not to be returned home in the interest of their own safety.

Charter said she was surprised by Jelinek's opposition, adding that the project's only goal is to obtain for the children what they are legally entitled to: a family environment.

Sullivan said he will take up the issue with Family Court Judge Gerald Hardcastle. He also said he believed that all children, and all parents, who come to Family Court should have legal representation.

The project plans to schedule hearings for all the children in its target group and schedule court hearings to identify deadlines that the county will have to meet in finding them family placements. If the deadlines are not met, Charter said, attorneys will seek contempt of court charges against the county, if appropriate.

In addition to the seven attorneys on the project staff, Charter said 15 private attorneys have volunteered to join the effort, and Charter is hoping that at least 15 more attorneys will step forward to take on a Child Haven case.

Ann Rubin, an administrator for the county's Department of Family Services, sat in on the Friday morning hearing and tried to reconcile the goal of the Children's Attorney Project with the reality of foster placement availability.

"We have no problem with what they're asking," Rubin said.

"We advocate for children to be in foster homes."

The problem, Rubin said, is that foster homes are in short supply in Clark County, an issue that became a crisis this year. Child Haven has been using its gymnasium as a boys' dormitory because the cottages are at capacity.

Recruiting efforts have been stepped up, and earlier this week, new Director of Family Services Tom Morton requested that the county increase funding for foster parent recruitment as part of an overall improvement plan for his beleaguered department.

The plan would require funding upward of $25 million.