The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink About2006 Village Court Annual Report.PDF 2006 ANNUAL REPORT VILLAGE OF CAYUGA HEIGHTS COURT Glenn G. Galbreath Village of Cayuga Heights Justice Patricia Kannus Village of Cayuga Heights Court Clerk ANNUAL REPORT OF GLENN G. GALBREATH, VILLAGE JUSTICE The total number of cases is about the same as last year. And while there have been a few changes in numbers of particular types of cases, it has been a relatively uneventful year. There have been no major trends or special crises. Following the summary of data immediately below is a short narrative about the data and other court activities for the year. More detailed court data is in the charts attached to the report. SUMMARY OF CASE .ACTIVITY Case Types 200 5_ 2006 Vehicle+ Traffic Law (V+TL) 956 933 Parking 117 95 Penal Law ("criminal") 19 31 Civil/Small Claims 10 3 Total Cases 1102 1062 Total Monies Collected $ 74,848 $ 63, 228 Number of V+TI, Trials 35 35 2 Vehicle and Traffic Law (V+TL) Cases (See attached chart.) Vehicle and traffic law matters account for the majority of the Court's cases, the fines and surcharges collected, and the Court Clerk's time. The total number of vehicle and traffic cases is about the same as last year. A few changes of note include: - Decrease in speeding cases (including in the school zone) - 224 in 2005, 155 in 2006. The problem we temporarily had because the local school zone speeding ordinance did not designate the specific 20 mile per hour limit was remedied by the Board in January. -Decrease in inspection sticker cases - 29 in 2005, 15 in 2006. There are few convictions in this category because most are dismissed if the defendant was uninspected a short time and immediately corrects it. - Increase in cell phone cases - '57 in 2005, 91 in 2006. What can one say, except we live in a society that is increasingly interested in multitasking while on the move! - Decrease in convictions - 611 in 2005, 538 in 2006. See the comments above and below about dismissals being common in inspection, registration and insurance cases. - Increase in dismissals - 338 in 2005, 384 in 2006. Almost all were overdue inspections and registration stickers or were no-insurance charges where the defendant simply did not have the valid insurance card in the vehicle at the time of the stop. - Decrease in fines/surcharges collected - $ 74,848 in 2005, $ 63,228. The reduction in monies collected is probably due to a variety of factors. The most important is probably the reduction in speeding and alcohol related cases. The fine/surcharge for a speeding conviction is generally not high($150 is typical), but because these cases make up a large proportion of the case load, the total fines/surcharges can be significant. Speeding cases dropped from 224 in 2005 to 155 in 2006. Also, alcohol-related traffic cases have much higher minimum/maximum fine/surcharge ranges, so the addition or reduction of even a few DWI or DWAI cases, can have a significant impact on the monies collected. Because the alcohol-related cases dropped from 11 in 2005 to 4 in 2006, the monies collected also dropped. Of course, the "good news"may be that the driving public may be more careful about not speeding and not driving drunk. Parking (See attached chart.) Parking tickets are usually processed administratively by the Police Department and the Court Clerk without the need for my intervention. Therefore, the parking ticket statistics are separated from the other vehicle and traffic matters. Only occasionally do I have to hold a trial or even review a defendant's response to a parking ticket. Nevertheless, the Court Clerk must always process the paperwork and occasionally,arrange for payment of the fines. The number of parking tickets dropped from 117 in 2005 to 95 in 2006. 3 Penal Law (Criminal Cases (See attached chart.) The category of Penal Law cases is one of the most important and time consuming. The Penal Law includes non-traffic violations, misdemeanors and felonies. Of course, some the Vehicle and Traffic Law cases can be just as serious (e.g. the misdemeanors and felonies of: driving while intoxicated, aggravated driving while intoxicated, reckless driving, aggravated unlicensed operation, leaving the scene of an injury accident, etc.). There were 31 Penal Law convictions in 2006 as compared to 19 in 2005, 24 in 2004, and 37 in 2003. The numbers are probably too small for us to claim any sort of trend. Civil/Small Claims Cases (See attached chart.) Although both categories deal with non-criminal, i.e civil matters, the "Civil Docket" is technically different from Small Claims. Both have the same monetary jurisdiction of$3,000, but the latter uses an expedited procedure and is more "consumer friendly." Thus, we see very few cases filed in the "Civil' category. Civil and small claims cases make up the smallest number of cases but include subject matter of importance, e.g. landlord-tenant matters, consumer transactions, contract disputes over bills for professional services, etc. These cases tend to be very time consuming and often result in longer trials and written opinions. The Court routinely refers these litigants to the Community Dispute Resolution Center for mediation,but does not delay the court proceedings while the non-litigation alternative is being considered or used. The number of these cases typically is between 0-3 each year, but we had 10 in 2005. In 2006 we dropped back to 3 cases. Vehicle and Traffic Trials (See attached chart.) The number of trials reflects only those held in vehicle and traffic law cases. We had 35 in 2006) which is the same as 2005. We do not collect data on the number of civil or Penal Law trials notwithstanding their often being lengthy events. Other activities We do not include in any of the data reports: late night arraignments, search warrant requests, pretrial hearings, status conferences, motion arguments, orders of protection, declarations of delinquency, revocations of probation, or sentencings. All these activities are time consuming and critical Court activities but collecting the data on these is not automatic by the computer system. I completed the required two one-day sessions of the Advanced Continuing Judicial Education Program for town and village justices. I did presentations at both sessions, one on Civil Overview and the other on Re-Sentencing Defendants. Patricia Kannus, the Court Clerk also attended clerkship refresher training sessions in 2006. 4 Miscellaneous In the past we generally recorded (on tape recorders we secured through New York State Justice Court Assistance Program Grants) all;misdemeanor trials and any other case which was complex, likely to be appealed or otherwise seemed to merit the retention of a more complete record. During 2006, I decided that it made sense to record all Court proceedings. We use micro tapes which are inexpensive and easy to store. Conclusion Should you have any questions or comments about the report, please contact me or the Court Clerk. Further, I remind everyone that the court sessions are held every Tuesday evening at 6:00 PM and every first Thursday of every month at 5:00 PM. The public in general, and you in particular, are invited to observe these sessions. Dated: March 28, 2007 Respectfully submitted, t- Glenn G. Galbreath Village Justice 5 VEHICLE + TRAFFIC CASES OFFENSE 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 speeding 311 148 174 204 143 speeding in school zone 5 20 12 stop sign 14 10 8 7 14 fail to obey traff. control device 208 209 178 200 188 DWI 1 3 2 2 2 DWAI 3 1 3 9 2 aggravated DWI fail to keep right 5 16 12 no passing zone 1 10 9 unlicensed operation 24 16 11 12 14 aggravated unlicensed operation 4 2 suspended/revoked license 1 4 1 unregistered vehicle 5 17 9 4 7 uninspected vehicle 50 27 33 29 15 equipment violation 31 32 23 6 6 seatbelt 37 30 41 24 14 no insurance 1 1 cell phone 15 33 43 57 91 license plate 20 2 2 other 15 51 13 9 6 TOTAL CONVICTIONS 721 601 551 611 538 TOTAL DISMISSED 555 461 421 338 384 ACD (V+TL only)(see below) 13 9 10 7 11 TOTAL V+TL CASES 1289 1071 982 956 933 V+TL TRIALS 38 16 22 35 35 PARKING TICKETS 202 192 152 117 95 SCOFFLAWED CASES (see below) 399 356 84 186 185 LIFTED LICENSE SUSPENSION (see below) 7 "ACD" is an adjournment in contemplation of dismissal. It is used when the defendant and prosecutor agree that the penalty imposed by a conviction is disproportionate to the actual offense, and they agree to conditions which if met by the defendant would warrant later dismissal of the charge. The defendant and prosecutor then have to secure the Justice's agreement before it can be:issued. "Scofflawed cases" are those where a defendant failed to appear or to pay. The Court Clerk notifies the Dep't of Motor Vehicles which in turn suspends the defendant's drivE;r's license until the case is fully resolved. In serious cases,the Court may also issue a bench warrant for the defedant's arrest. "Lifted License Suspension" is a new fee the State requires when a license is restored after suspension. PENAL LAW CASES OFFENSE 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 alcohol 2 alcohol in the park 1 7 2 4 14 assault 1 aggravated harassment 4 bad check burglary 1 crirn. contempt 1 crirn. impersonation 1 crirn. mischief 3 1 1 crirn. poss.forged instrument 2 1 crirn. poss. stolen property 2 5 crirn. poss. of a weapon crirn. tampering 2 dock ordinance 1 2 10 1 disorderly conduct 4 3 6 fireworks 1 1 2 7 fugitive grand larceny harassment 1 3 3 illegal; dumping 1 2 menacing motor vehicle - unlawful use open burning 1 park-after hours 4 3 1 4 park- lawn petite larceny 6 1 2 poss. of a controlled substance 4 4 2 2 3 public lewdness rape-attempted 1 reckless endangerment 2 resisting arrest 1 scheme to defraud 1 selling controlled substance trespass 1 unlawful imprisonment 2 2 unlawful contact with a minor 1 zoning violation other criminal 5 1 TOTAL CASES 46 37 24 19 31 PENAL LAW CASES OFFENSE 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 alcohol 2 alcohol in the park 1 7 2 4 14 assault 1 aggravated harassment 4 bad check burglary 1 crim. contempt 1 crim. impersonation 1 crim. mischief 3 1 1 crim. poss. forged instrument 2 1 crim. poss. stolen property 2 5 crim. poss. of a weapon crim. tampering 2 dog ordinance 1 2 10 1 disorderly conduct 4 3 6 fireworks 1 1 2 7 fugitive grand larceny harassment 1 3 3 illegal; dumping 1 2 menacing motor vehicle - unlawful use open burning 1 park - after hours 4 3 1 4 park - lawn petite larceny 6 1 2 poss. of a controlled substance 4 4 2 2 3 public lewdness rape - attempted 1 reckless endangerment 2 resisting arrest 1 scheme to defraud 1 selling controlled substance trespass 1 unlawful imprisonment 2 2 unlawful contact with a minor 1 zoning violation other criminal 5 1 TOTAL CASES 46 37 24 19 31 CIVIL CASES (SMALL CLAIMS + REGULAR CIVIL DOCKET) - 2006 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 1 3 8 10 3 ALL FINES, FEES + SURCHARGES (CIVIL + CRIMINAL) - 2006 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 COLLECTED 70,176 59,540 64,615 74,848 63,228 OWED BY DEFENDANTS 14,330 15,225 15,495 13,455 14,175