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HomeMy WebLinkAboutJustice 2011 Annual Report.pdf 2011 ANNUAL REPORT VILLAGE OF CAYUGA HEIGHTS COURT v i 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. In sum, it has been another relatively quiet year without any 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. The charts attached at the end contain more detailed court data. SUMMARY OF CASE ACTIVITY Case Tomes 2010 2011 Vehicle+ Traffic Law(V+TL) 504 506 (including parking) Penal Law("criminal") 16 6 Civil/Small Claims 2 3 Total Cases 522 515 Total Monies Collected $38,197 $41,220 Number of V+TL Trials 8 14 Vehicle and Traffic Law (V+TL,) Cases (See attached chart.) Vehicle and traffic law matters account for the majority of the Court's cases, fines and surcharges collected and the Court Clerk's time. The total number of vehicle and traffic cases is virtually the same as last year. There was a notable drop in the alcohol related cases (Driving While Intoxicated(DWI), Driving With Ability Impaired (DWAI) and Aggravated DWI (ADWI)). There were only 2 in 2011, as compared to 5 in 2010, 21 in 2009 and 35 in 2008. We hope this is a trend. The number of cases dismissed remained about the same. Most of the dismissals were done in the "interests of justice," either because there was no violation (e.g. driving without insurance and it was later shown to have been in effect at the time of the ticket) or the violation was minor and quickly remedied (e.g. a recently expired inspection or registration or minor equipment violation). Dismissals also can occur when the prosecution and defense enter into an agreement and then together ask and convince the court to agree to a plea bargain. Sometimes those plea bargains result in reducing or dismissing some of the charges in return for a guilty plea. In some courts, the pressure of high case loads can be a significant incentive for accepting plea bargains -2- proposed by the defense and prosecution. Because the Village Court's case numbers are not overwhelming, case load pressure does not play a role in my determining if a plea bargain is appropriate. There was a small increase in fines/surcharges collected - $41,226 in 2011 as compared to $38,197 in 2010. The same was true of the number of V+TL trials -14 in 2011 and 8 in 2010. Parking (See attached chart.) Although parking tickets are part of the V+TL statistics, we identify them separately, because the administrative processing frequently is done by the Police Department and the Court Clerk without the need of my intervention. Only occasionally do I need to arraign a defendant or hold a trial for a parking ticket. Nevertheless, the Court Clerk must always process the paperwork and occasionally arrange for payment of the fine. The number of parking tickets did not change - 127 in 2011; 125 in 2010 Penal Law (Criminal) Cases (See attached chart.) The Penal Law category includes infractions, misdemeanor and felony cases, These are more serious matters,take more time and create a formal criminal record for the defendant that stays with him/her for a lifetime. Not counted here, even though many are also misdemeanors and felonies, are some V+TL offenses, e.g. DWI, ADWI, reckless driving, aggravated unlicensed operation, leaving the scene of an injury accident, etc. There were only 6 Penal Law convictions in 2011 as compared to 16 in 2010, 12 in 2009, and 15 in 2008. Again, the trend seems to be going in the right direction. One thing to note is that felonies, the most serious criminal cases (e.g. homicide, major sexual crimes,robbery, etc), do not actually appear in our statistics. The Village Court has preliminary jurisdiction over felonies and regularly holds felony arraignments, bail hearings and preliminary hearings to determine if the defendant should be held for the grand jury. Then these felony cases are transferred to the Tompkins County Court where they can result in conviction or dismissal. Because our computer program collects data based on convictions and dismissals, and not transferral of cases to the County Court, the felony cases do not appear in our statistics. Vehicle and Traffic Trials (See attached chart.) The number of trials reflects only those held in V+TL cases. We had 14 in 2011, which is higher than in 2010 but still fairly low relative to what the Court has done historically. We do not collect data on the number of civil or Penal Law trials notwithstanding their often being more lengthy. Again this is a function of the computer program. Civil and Small Claims Cases (See attached chart.) Although both the civil and small claims categories concern non-criminal and non-V+TL matters, the "Civil Docket" is technically different from "Small Claims." Both have the same maximum monetary jurisdiction of$3,000, but the Small Claims cases use an expedited procedure that is simpler, less expensive and more accessible to non-lawyer parties. Civil and Small Claims cases make up the smallest number of cases (3 in 2011) but include subject matter -3- of importance to the parties, e.g. landlord-tenant matters, consumer transactions, contract disputes over bills for professional services, etc. These cases tend to be time consuming and often result in longer trials and written opinions. The Court routinely refers the parties to the Community Dispute Resolution Center for mediation as soon as the case is filed with the court, but does not delay the court's proceedings while mediation is being considered or used. 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, felony preliminary hearings, hearings on violations of probation, or sentencings. All are time consuming and important activities, but collecting the data on them is not automatic by our computer. Patricia Kannus, the Court Clerk, attended clerkship refresher training sessions in 2011. I completed the required two days of Advanced Continuing Judicial Education Program for town and village justices. In addition, I made ten presentations on a variety of topics to new and experienced judges as part of the mandatory training for New Yorktown and village justices. I also presented an all-day ethics workshop to New York State Administrative Law Judges. Our 2009 application to the Justice Court Assistance Program was granted for the maximum $30,000 award. This will play a major role in the new addition to the Village Hall and Court and will include: air conditioning and heating the court, add handicapped accessible bathrooms and a jury/conference/lunch room, and a duress alarm in the court office. These additions not only will improve the Court's service to our community, but will be available for most other village functions as well. Work has begun and should be completed this summer. 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 starting at 6:00 PM and the first Thursday of every month starting at 5:00 PM. The public in general, and you in particular, are invited to observe these sessions. Dated: February 1, 2012 Respectfully submitted Glenn G. Galbreath Village Justice -4- VEHICLE + TRAFFIC CASES(most are not criminal misdemeanors or felonies) CONVICTIONS OFFENSE(generally infractions 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 speeding 164 135 84 52 67 speeding in school zone 11 11 7 6 11 stop sin 11 13 3 6 3 fail to obey traff. control device 195 166 121 94 91 DWAI (driv. with ability impaired) 10 9 14 3 1 DWI (driv. while intox. -misd. or felony) 3 18 3 2 1 ADWI (aggravated DWI -misd. or felony) 8 4 0 0 fail to keep right 9 3 5 8 15 no passing zone/follow to closely 3 1 5 1 6 AUO(aggray. unlicens. oper. -misd. or felony) 2 8 3 0 2 unlicensed operation 22 17 14 10 7 suspnd./revokd. license(misd. or felony) 1 1 0 unregistered vehicle 6 8 21 5 2 uninspected vehicle 36 17 10 6 1 equipment violation 11 4 2 0 6 seatbelt 14 14 18 5 6 no insurance 1 0 0 cell phone 57 71 77 61 43 other 5 16 3 6 9 TOTAL CONVICTIONS 561 519 375 276 271 TOTAL DISMISSED 334 372 228 218 235 ACD (see below) 9 13 23 10 10 PARKING TICKETS 124 75 55 125 127 TOTAL V+TL CASES 1028 979 681 504 506 SCOFFLAWED CASES (see below) 93 91 48 61 75 LIFTED LICENSE SUSPENSION (see below) 11 9 6 9 5 V+TL TRIALS 33 31 22 8 14 '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 must secure the justice's agreement before it can be issued. "Scofllawed cases" are those where a defendant failed to appear or to pay. The Court Clerk notes the Dep't of Motor Vehicles which in turn suspends the defendant's driver's license until the case is fully resolved. In serious rases,the Court may also issue a bench warrant for the defendant's arrest. "Lifted License Suspension" is a new fee($70)the State requires when a license is restored after suspension. PENAL LAW CASES(most are criminal charges - misdemeanors of felonies) OFFENSE 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 alcohol 3 4 1 alcohol in the park 1 1 assault aggravated harassment bad check burglary crim. contempt crim. impersonation crim. mischief 1 crim. poss. forged instrument crim. poss. stolen property 1 1 crim. poss. of a weapon crim. tampering dog ordinance 2 3 1 disorderly conduct 2 1 1 3 fireworks fugitive rand larceny 1 harassment 1 illegal; dumping menacing motor vehicle-unlawful use open burning park-after hours 5 3 5 3 1 park-lawn 1 1 petite larceny 1 2 poss. of a controlled substance 1 3 3 3 public lewdness rape-attempted reckless endangerment resisting arrest scheme to defraud selling controlled substance trespass 2 unlawful imprisonment unlawful contact with a minor zoning violation other criminal 1 2 TOTAL CASES 16 15 12 16 6 CIVIL CASES 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 SMALL CLAIMS+ REGULAR CIVIL 1 3 9 2 3 ALL FINES, FEES + SURCHARGES CIVIL + CRIMINAL 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 COLLECTED $68,775 $64,597 $52,536 $38,197 $41,220 OWED BY DEFENDANTS $15,975 $22,195 $21,775 $23,525 $25,175