April 26, 2000

 

Betty Jo DeForest, Chair

Jackson County Board of Commissioners

120 W. Michigan Ave.

Jackson, MI 49201

 

Dear Madam Chair:

 

The following is the 1999 Annual Report for the 12th District Court.  The report summarizes the activities of the 12th District Court for the calendar year of 1999.  The information is intended for informational purposes regarding the judicial business of the district court.

 

FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT:

 

The 12th District Court collected a total of approximately $6,400,000 in fines, costs and fees.  Of that amount, $4,113,607 (64.2%) was deposited in the County General Fund.  $1,440,977 (22.50%) was collected for distribution to the State of Michigan.  $352,590 (5.50%) was collected for distribution to the Jackson County Library.  Approximately $500,000 (7.8%) was collected for the various municipalities in Jackson County (see Appendix)

 

REVENUE:

 

 

 

 

COLLECTED

 

BUDGETED

 

PERCENT

 

GENERAL FUND

DISTRICT COURT

101-136

 

 

$3,919,718

 

 

$3,795,339

 

 

103.28%

 

GENERAL FUND

INTENSIVE PROBATION

101-279

 

 

$117,360

 

 

$107,980

 

 

108.69%

 

GENERAL FUND

PUBLIC DEFENDER

101-230-689.080

 

$76,529

 

$64,000

 

119.580%

 

TOTAL

 

$4,113,607.00

 

$3,967,319.00

 

103.69%

$182,900 State Judges Supplement is not included in the District Court General Fund (101-136) Collected and Budgeted figures.

                          

 

Overall, the court collected almost one million dollars ($966,806) more than in 1998.  Compared to 1998, the court deposited $410,230 more in the General Fund in 1999.  The single most important factor that contributed to the increased revenue was a significant increase in the number of traffic citations filed with the court during 1999.  Court records show that there were 9,314 more traffic citations filed with the court compared to the previous year. 

 

The Intensive Supervision Program once again proved to be self supported as revenue ($117,630) exceeded expenses ($93,866) by $23,764.  The program was expanded to include the circuit court in July after the Jail Overcrowding Committee made a recommendation for expansion.  

 

 

 

EXPENSES:

 

 

 

 

 

EXPENDED

 

BUDGETED

 

PERCENT

 

DISTRICT COURT

101-136

 

$2,537,298

 

$2,610,319

 

97.20%

 

INTENSIVE PROBATION

101-279

 

$93,866

 

$130,690

 

71.82%

 

PUBLIC DEFENDER

101-230-800.000

$97,705

 

$100,000

 

97.70%

 

CAPITAL OUTLAY

402-978

$231,034

$253,840

 

91.02%

 

VEHICLES

402-979

$48,245

 

$52,800

 

91.37%

 

TOTAL

 

$3,008,148.00

 

$3,147,649.00

 

95.57%

 

 

FILE MANAGEMENT:

 

The court opened 70,713 new cases in 1999.  This figure represents a significant increase of cases (9463) from 1998.  The following represents the case filings for 1996, 1997, 1998 and 1999.

 

 

 

OFFENSE

 

1996

 

1997

 

1998

 

1999

 

Difference from 98

 

Criminal Felony

 

1171

 

1384

 

1384

 

1372

 

-12

 

Criminal Misdemeanor

 

4778

 

5111

 

4836

 

5134

 

298

 

OUIL Felony

 

69

 

73

 

84

 

106

 

22

 

OUIL Misdemeanor

 

953

 

1115

 

1087

 

1081

 

-6

 

Traffic Misdemeanor

 

7720

 

8579

 

8442

 

10219

 

1777

 

Civil Infractions

 

38628

 

38619

 

37725

 

45262

 

7537

 

Non-Traffic Civil Inf.

 

115

 

1

 

2

 

8

 

2

 

General Civil

 

2262

 

2776

 

3236

 

2870

 

-366

 

Small Claims

 

2080

 

1875

 

1955

 

1770

 

-185

 

Summary Proceedings

 

1950

 

2021

 

2285

 

2565

 

280

 

Parking

 

245

 

347

 

214

 

270

 

56

 

Peace Bonds

 

208

 

0

 

0

 

0

 

0

 

TOTALS

 

60179

 

61901

 

61250

 

70713

 

9463

 

CIVIL DIVISION:

 

District court judges and magistrates performed 280 weddings in 1999.  The division witnessed an increase in collection activity on civil cases.  Garnishment activity increased by 10.47% in 1999.  The court issued 22% more Writs of Executions in 1999.  

 

In November of 1999, the civil division embarked on a case processing benchmarking project.  The goal of the project is to gather information from other district courts in the State of Michigan regarding caseload, staff size and average turn around time for the issuance of new suits.  Once the data is collected and analyzed the division will establish case processing standards. 

 

COLLECTIONS DIVISION

 

The 12th District Court Collection Program had another outstanding year in 1999.  The program is credited with collecting over 1 million dollars ($1,098,087) in outstanding fines and costs for the district court and circuit/family court. 

 

The Collections department surpassed its 1999 goal of  $850,000 by $46,794.   The previous year’s goal was $650,000.  The total amount collected by the department in 1999 was $896,794.  The court, being serious about the collection of fines and costs and holding individuals accountable for their actions, aggressively pursues delinquent cases.  In an effort to collect from scofflaws, the court has contracted with Court Services, Inc.  Court Services, Inc. is a private collection firm that performs field investigative work.  Court Services, Inc. collected $201,293 for the court’s external collection program.

 

The table listed on the next page shows the amount the collections department collected for each court as well as the total amount collected by Court Services, Inc. 

 

The increase in the collection rate is attributed to an increase in the overall caseload of the department and revisions and improvements in the manner in which cases were assigned to collections for enforcement.  The increase in traffic filings and the addition of a collection officer in the first quarter of 1999 greatly assisted the department in surpassing its collection goal.

 

The 12th District Court Collection Program received national recognition in 1999 by the National Association of Counties.  The court was given an Achievement Award for taking an innovative approach regarding the collection of delinquent fines in cost owed to the court.  

 

 

 

 

INTERNAL COLLECTIONS

 

District Court

$885,521

Circuit Court

$7,681

Family (Juvenile)

$3,592

TOTAL INTERNAL COLLECTIONS

$896,794

EXTERNAL COLLECTIONS

 

Court Services Inc.

$201,293

TOTAL EXTERNAL COLLECTIONS

$201,293

TOTAL

$1,098,087

 

 

The Collections Department has implemented a collection program for circuit/family court.  A significant amount of time was spent on the development of the parameters and protocols for circuit/family court collections.   Throughout 1999, collection rates have improved somewhat for circuit/family court matters.   The relocation of Juvenile Court to the courthouse has allowed for better communication between the collection department and juvenile court regarding collection matters.  The court is continually reviewing its collection procedures and practices in the circuit/family court in an effort to make improvements to the program.

 

CRIMINAL DIVISION

 

In 1999, the 12th District Court began entering all warrants into the Law Enforcement Information Network (LEIN).  LEIN is a computerized communications system for law enforcement agencies. In the past, when the court issued a warrant, it was sent to the respective police agency to be entered into LEIN.  To have the warrant removed from LEIN, the court would have to contact the respective police agency and request to have the warrant removed from LEIN.  The police agency would then forward the warrant to the court.   Typically, the warrant would be returned to the court within 1 to 3 business days.  Sometimes, the warrants were not removed from LEIN at the request of the court and defendants were arrested on warrants that were no longer valid.  The court now enters all warrants into LEIN and has the ability to remove warrants from LEIN.   This process has greatly reduced the potential liability for lawsuits resulting from false arrest.  In addition, LEIN entry by the court has reduced the amount of paper work for both the court and law enforcement agencies.    

 

 

The Jail Overcrowding Committee recommended that district court judges accept pleas for felony matters where the defendant was incarcerated and unable to post bond.  A joint local administrative order was presented to the State Court Administrative Office for approval.  The order was approved in April and the court began the process of accepting felony pleas in the district court.  Cases eligible for felony pleas in the district court are moved through the judicial system quicker.  Thus, defendants are not spending as much time in jail prior to sentencing.

 

The deputy clerks continued the cross training process that was implemented in 1998.  Cross training has been helpful in reducing the level of stress for employees during periods of employee absences.  In addition, it broadens the employee’s knowledge of the department and enhances the over all function of the criminal department and court.

PROBATION DIVISION:

 

In 1999 the 12th District Court Probation Department conducted 2,081 pre-sentence investigations.  The judges referred approximately 175 individuals/month to the department for an in-depth interview and investigation prior to sentencing. 

 

In June of 1999, an additional intensive supervision probation officer was added after the Jail Overcrowding Committee recommended that the program be expanded to the circuit court in an effort to ease jail-overcrowding conditions.   From June through December, 22 defendants were referred to the program by the circuit court.