Court cash cuts could have long-term effect
Backlog in cases likely, judges sayBy ANGELA BURCH Messenger staff writer
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Fact Box
Due to budget and personnel restrictions, Iowa Supreme Court Chief Justice Marsha K. Ternus issued an order regarding the priority that cases should be heard.
Priority cases
- Civil commitment cases
- Domestic abuse cases
- Juvenile cases, including child in need of assistance, termination of parental rights and juvenile delinquency
- Criminal cases - especially where defendants demand speedy trial
- Cases involving child custody, physical care, visitation and child support
- Guardianship cases
- Other cases involving a threat of serious harm to health or safety
Cases that will not be given priority
- Dissolutions of marriage not involving children
- Foreclosure actions
- Civil actions for recovery of money damages
- Small claims
- Administrative appeals
- Probate other than guardianships
- Other law and equity cases
Budget cuts in Iowa's judicial branch will eventually cause a backlog in cases, officials say.
Kurt Wilke, chief judge for the Second Judicial District, said an 11 percent cut of the work force and 10 mandatory furlough days is going to directly impact the court system on all levels.
"We feel that we get hit the hardest," Wilke said. "That's mostly because our budget is almost all used up with people. If we had programs we could cut back, we'd cut those programs and keep the people."
The judicial branch brought in $148 million through fines, fees and costs this past year - which goes into the general fund, Wilke said. Of the general fund, the judicial branch's budget for the entire year was $160 million. The overwhelming majority of the branch's budget - 94 to 95 percent - is for personnel. The remainder is for all other expenses, such as communication and supplies.
In District 2, which includes Webster County, three positions were eliminated and one position was reduced from 40 to 26 hours a week. Clerk of Court offices statewide have had their hours cut, making it more difficult for the public to file petitions.
"We have fewer people working in the judicial branch now than we did in 2001," he said.
But when the budget cuts came down from the Iowa Supreme Court in November, Wilke said they couldn't keep cutting the same positions.
"We cannot simply bleed the clerks' offices dry with cuts this time," he said. "How are we expected to actually collect more fine money when we have 12 percent fewer employees and those are in the worst area (to lose): Clerk of Courts? They expect us to continue to do the same thing we're doing now without the resources."
Most of the positions cut in November are court reporters and juvenile court officers.
As for the reduction in personnel, Iowa Supreme Court Justice Mark Cady said there will be immediate consequences.
"We're not going to be able to reach the cases with the speed that people are accustomed to, and we're not going to be able to process claims in the manner that we would hope to," Cady said. "The public is going to have to wait longer to get things from its court system."
Webster County District Associate Judge Kurt Stoebe lost his court reporter in recent budget cuts. His court reporter was his entire support staff.
In addition to taking a verbatim record of all proceedings, court reporters perform all support staff functions ranging from typing orders, taking care of files, answering phones, keeping track cases, maintaining filing deadlines, and anything else necessary to keep the court running smoothly.
"I can't produce as much work," he said. "Everyone is working very hard to make do with less, but there's only so far you can stretch it."
District Associate Court sees a high volume of cases ranging from serious misdemeanor offenses to Class D felonies, Stoebe said. In addition, Stoebe hears juvenile cases for Pocahontas, Calhoun, Humboldt and Webster counties.
With the loss of his reporter, the Class D felony cases will now be handled by District Court and the Webster County Attorney's Office will take over case scheduling. But with the county's budget concerns, Stoebe said he doesn't know how long that office will be able to help.
"It adds expense to other people in the system," he said. "What we're hoping for is full funding by the Legislature. Through the years, through the attrition of all these other people through various budget crises and they haven't been restored, we're really down to the bone."
Wilke said they must now share court reporters. At any given time, a judge who would have been able to hear a case, won't be able to without a court reporter, Wilke said.
"If we don't have court reporters, we can't try cases," Wilke said. "We will have to use four reporters to cover five judges right in this area. The end result will be that they will not be able to reach the cases they reached last year - we just don't have the manpower to do that."
The purpose for keeping the record during a trial is for an appeal. Appellate judges review the certified transcript of the initial trial in making their ruling.
Statewide, the judicial branch is already short 21 judges needed to meet case load demands in a timely manner based on a workload formula derived from cases filed and population, Wilke said.
Wilke said the judicial branch is looking into using digital audio recording devices to record court cases.
However, he said it still would require someone in the courtroom to operate the equipment and make sure everything is working properly.
"The last thing you want to happen is to get half way through a murder trial and find out your recording equipment isn't working," he said.
By the time the equipment is purchased and installed, it will cost around $30,000 per system - money he said the judicial system doesn't have right now.
"I think it's going to take a concerted effort on the part of everybody in the judicial branch and the public to get up and say 'If you want the courts to run efficiently, you should fund them appropriately,'" Wilke said.
As for the staff cuts, Wilke said it is going to have a tremendous effect on the timeliness of all cases heard in a court.
"We'll try to weather this out," Wilke said. "We know that next year is not going to be any better than this year, and we may suffer even more cuts next fiscal year."
Finding the funds for the branch to operate will be up to the Legislature, Cady said.
Contact Angela Burch at (515) 573-2141 or aburch@messengernews.net
