The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink AboutJustice Annual Report 2013.pdf2013 ANNUAL REPORT VILAGE OF CAYUGAHEIGHTS 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 This year's repo re very few major shifts in court activity in 2013 from2012' The case d about the same. Fines uoa rur.tt-ges collectedincreased about surcharges were also raised about 10%. Following the summary of dataimmediately below is a short narrative about the data and othercourt activities for the year. The charts attached at the end contain a little more detail in the dataover a five year period. Case Tyoes Vehicle + Traffic Law (V+TL) (including parking) Penal/Criminal Law Civil/Small Claims 2013 952 2012 966 Total Cases Total Funds Collected Number of V+TL Trials 38 1 1,005 $65,073 I9 (See attached chart.) 37 3 992 870,497 t4 Vehicle and traffic law matters account for the majority of the Court's cases, fines andsurcharges collected and the Court Clerk's time. The total number of vehicle and traffic cases in2013 (952) is essentially the same as 2012 (966). There was a small decrease in the number ofregular and school zone speeding convictions (i ll rn2012;98 in 2013), but there was adramatic increase in convictions for failure to obey a traffic control device (FTOTCD)(I66 in2012;216 in2013). FTOTCD is a "catch all" traifrc offense. That is, it is an alternative andlower level charge to other offenses such as speeding, not stoppin g at astop sign, etc. Officerssometimes choose to charge a defendant withFToTCD knowing that the fine and points areIower for FTOTCD than the alternative charse. -2- There was an increase in convictions in the alcohol-related cases (Driving While Intoxicated 3we That ons in2008 (35) and2009 (21). So in the long run, the trend appears to be going in the right direction. The number of cell phone c 64 in20r2to 39 in 2013. My best guessis that it is a function of mo trtil?;il,ffipenarties 3J:1'lil"'dfrl;:H:13;Jfil"ili*', pressure does not play arole in my determining if a plea bargain is appropriate or not. Parking (See attached chart.) stics, we identi$ them separately, because the Police Department and the Court Clerk ionally do I need to arraign a defendant or hold always process the paperwork of parking tickets increased from PenaUCriminal Cases (See attached chart.) The Penal/Criminal Law category includes local law and state law infractions, misdemeanorsand felonies' Generally, these are more serious than most v+TL matters and take more time. cord for a defendant that stays with inal Cases statistics, even though offenses, e.g. DWI, ADWI, reckless the scene of an injury accident, etc. Those n the V+TL statistics chart. In 2013 our criminal law convictions stayed the same - 3 8 in 2012 and 37 in 2013 . At least halfof these cases were not especially serious, e.g. 8 noise violations and l1 people visiting SunsetPark after hours. -3- one thing to note is that felonies, the most serious criminal cases (e.g. homicide, major sexual statistics even though our court regularly has reliminary jurisdiction over felonies and s and preliminary felony hearings to determine . Once the Grand Jury indicts the defendant, or onable cause to believe s/he committed a felonv. , then the case is transferred to the Tompkins rogram collects data based on convictions and our statistics. county court, the felony cases do not appear in Vehicle and Traffic Trials (See attached chart.) eflects only those held in V+TL in2}I3,which is about this is still fairly low relative to done historically. We the number of civil or criminal I anding their often beingmore lengthy' Again this is a due to a limitation in our computer program's data collection. Civil and Small Claims Cases (See attached chart.) categorie and non-V+TLdifferent Both have the same 0, but the e an expeditedprocedure that is simpler, less expensive and more accessible to non-lawyer parties. Civil andSmall Claims cases make up the smallest number of cases (only 3 in 2013) but include subject l-tenant matters, oonsumer transactions, contract These cases tend to be time consuming and. The Court routinely refers the parties to the iation 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 te night arraignments, search or arrest warrants, ings/arguments, orders of protection, hearings, hearings on violations of probation, or ant activities, but collecting the data on them is Patricia Kannus, the Court Clerk, attended clerkship refresher training sessions in2013. Icompl-eled the require(l two days of Advanced Continuing Judicial EJucation program fbr townand village justices. A few years ago we anltea to.the Justice Court Assistance Program and were granted themaximum $30,000 awhd. This, along with an even more substantial contribution by the -/t - our new addition to the Village Hall and Court. the space where the Chief of police Chief used ere are two handicapped accessible bathrooms are also on our way to having air conditioning and better heating in Marcham Hall. These additions not only improve the Clourt's service to ourcommunity, but are available for most other village functions as well. Conclusion Should you have any questions or comments, please contact me or the Court Clerk. Further, Iremind everyone that the court sessions are held every Tuesday evening starting at 6:00 pM andthe first Thursday of every month starting at 5:00 pM. fne pnUti. in glneral, aird you inparticular, are invited to observe these sessions. Dated: January 31,2014 Respectfully s Glenn G. Galbreath Villase Justice -5- VEHICLE + T coNVtcll9NS 201320082009201020112012speeding1358452679375speeding in schoolzone stop sign 11 7 6 11 18 23 1213oo311uuuy Lt.ril. uunU-ot oevlce 166 121 94 YI 166 216\ary]fryMqilrry rmpatreo)I 14 J 1 2(urv. wnle tnrox. - mtso. or Telony)18 ?2 1 1 6ADWI (aggravated DW - misO. or tetony)I 4 3fail to keep right 5 8 15 10 9ne passtng zone/roilow to closely 1 5 1 6 1 3AUO (aggrav. unlicens. oper. - mtsd.ifelo{ry)8 2 1 2ur Ituut tugu ulJetallon 17 14 10 7 12 Isuspnd./revokd. license (misd. or felony)1 1util sgtslet gu venlulg uninspected vehicle equipment violation seatbelt no Insurance cell phone other 8 2 5 z 1 17 10 I Y 2 4 2 6 13 12 14 18 5 o 10 5 77 64716143 39 16 J o I 16 27 TOTAL CONVICTIONS 519 375 276 271 429 446 TOTAL DISMISSED ACD (see betow) 372 228 218 235 372 329 13 23 10 10 18 10 rAl\l\ltllJ lllrntrlu 55 125 127 147 167 TOTAL V+TL CASES 979 681 504 506 966 952 SCOFFLAWED CASES (see betrcw)o4 48 61 75 51 94 LIFTED LICENSE SUSPENSTONIsee below}I 6 Y 5 7 7 V+TL TRIALS 31 22 6 14 19 14 lws j:! guJgrrnmelr rn contemplation of dismissal. lt is used \ conditions which if met by the defendant would warrant later dismissr ar or to pay. The Court Clerk no thedefendant'sdriver's|icenseunti|thecast tifies r is fullv L,r.vu Ltueuse Juspensron" ts a new tee (970) the Sta le requires wf en a license s restored aft :r suspensiol PENAL/CRIMINAL LAW CASES misdemeanors and infractions, state + loca motor vehicle - unlawful use noise ordinance (new 2012 unlawful contact with a minor CIVIL CASES 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 1 SMALL CLAIMS + REGULAR GIVIL J 9 2 ?3 ALL FINES, FEES + SURCHARG ES (CIVI L + CRil\INAL 2011 2012 2013 rrlf,rEFr $n4,597 $52.536 $38,1 97 $41,220 $65,073 $70,497 a,b22,195 $21,775 $23,525 $25,1 75 $20,995 $21,750