« Ind. Decisions - "Property owners can't be sued over falls on snowy sidewalks" | Main | Ind. Courts - "Governor appoints New Castle city judge" »

Saturday, March 03, 2007

Ind. Courts - More on: "Hammond City Court on last legs?"

Apparently not, according to this story today in the NWI Times, written by Susan Brown:

HAMMOND | The City Court won't see its demise any time soon despite a recent veto by Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr.

With the veto against the court's renewal upheld by the City Council last week, it appeared the court would cease to exist by Dec. 31 of this year as prescribed by ordinance.

Instead, experts agree state law prevents the court from being abolished until 2010.

"It was too late anyway," said Tom Carusillo, director of trial court services for the state court administrator. "If you were going to establish or abolish a court you would have had to do it in 2006."

The next opportunity is 2010, he said. State law allows to establish or abolish a court every four years.

Once a state court is created, state law simply dictates it exists until it is abolished. It makes no requirement for four-year renewals as has been the city's practice.

The ordinance is expected to be amended to comply with state law when the council next meets March 12.

"The ordinance is (written) so everybody understands the court exists until the council decides it will not exist," City Attorney Kris Kantar said Friday.

Kantar said the court has been operating since at least the 1930s, though the original ordinance appears not to have been written until 1978.

Kantar said it's unclear why the city's ordinance has been calling for the court's renewal every four years when it hasn't been necessary since at least 1986.

"This is the way it's always been done," she said.

The earlier story, from Feb. 26th, is available here.

Posted by Marcia Oddi on March 3, 2007 10:23 AM
Posted to Indiana Courts