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Sunday, September 30, 2007

Ind. Courts - "Two courts set to test records system"

The ILB has a long list of entries, beginning with this one on March 8, 2005, on the Indiana Supreme Court's efforts to implement a state-wide case management system.

Information on the progress of this project is not frequent. The most recent ILB entry was this one from June 11, 2007, based on a press release from Tyler Technologies, announcing that the company had signed a contract with the Indiana Supreme Court. At that time, and today, the most recent information on the Court's website was dated May 24, 2007. A quote:

JTAC is working with Tyler Technologies, Inc., to implement Odyssey in a phased approach. Phases 0 and 1 are currently in progress. During these two phases, Odyssey will be implemented in two pilot locations: all Monroe County Circuit Courts and Washington Township Small Claims Court in Marion County. Odyssey is anticipated to be live in these courts by the end of 2007.
From half-way through Jon Murray's story today in the Indianapolis Star we get the news:
Monroe Circuit Court and Washington Township Small Claims Court in Marion County are up first. They plan to switch to Tyler's Odyssey case-management software in December.
But perhaps the real news is in the next paragraphs:
Frustrated by the delays, however, Marion Superior Court judges sought permission from the Supreme Court to proceed with their own upgrade of the county's nearly 20-year-old case-management system, JUSTIS.

Like Odyssey, the county's new system will be Web-based and promises many of the same improvements. Employees have been working with consultants to build it from the ground up, paying for the work within the court's maintenance budget.

"Our courts have been chomping at the bit to move forward," said Glenn Lawrence, the Marion Superior Court administrator. "It's a film camera as opposed to a digital camera." * * *

Marion County's system could be ready to go live in the spring. But the judges also will keep an eye on the state's efforts, Lawrence said, and could decide to wait it out based on a financial analysis and how well the pilot testing goes. If the county keeps its own system, Lawrence said, it still would be able to connect with those in the state's web. * * *

The Supreme Court's Judicial Technology and Automation Committee (JTAC) is overseeing the effort. Its other projects include the computerization of traffic tickets and protective orders.

The computerized court system could expand across the state over six years, beginning in 2009, if later pilot counties are successful. Counties won't be forced to make the switch, DePrez said. If Marion County, which handles one-quarter of the state's cases, signs on, it likely would get priority, she said.

With both systems, the public likely would be able to view some case information online.

The initial story on the Court's project appeared in the Indianapolis Star on March 8th, 2005. Written by Staci Hupp, it was headed "Plan to link 400 courts hits a wall: Costly software glitch halts effort to computerize records statewide". Portions are quoted in this 3/8/07 ILB entry, including:
The breakdown surfaced in December, as Marion County officials tested a piece of software designed for Indiana civil courts. They found it lacked a critical element -- the ability to keep tabs on court fines and costs.
Today's Star story includes this Timetable for the revamped project:
• June 2007: Initial analysis of Indiana courts' needs. Completed.

• December 2007: Begin a test drive of Tyler's Odyssey software in Monroe Circuit Court and Washington Township Small Claims Court in Marion County.

• By mid-2009: Continue refining the program based on the first two sites. Convert five other pilot counties to the new system.

• 2009 to 2015: Begin sending "deployment teams" county to county to install the system across the state.

Posted by Marcia Oddi on September 30, 2007 10:21 AM
Posted to Indiana Courts