(a) Established. Pursuant to the authority granted by Wis. Stats. Chapter 755, there is hereby established a Municipal Court for the village.
(b) Office of Municipal Judge created. Pursuant to the authority granted by Wis. Stats. Chapter 755, there is hereby created the office of Municipal Judge for the Municipal Court for the village.
(c) Election; term. The Municipal Judge shall be elected at large at the spring election on the even-numbered years for a term of two years commencing on May 1 succeeding the election. The Municipal Judge shall be subject to the State Code of Judicial Ethics and shall file an annual financial statement.
(d) Salary. The salary of the Municipal Judge may be increased for a new term prior to the beginning of the term for the Judge, or for the second year of a term before the start of the second year of the term of the Judge, but the salary shall not be decreased during the term of the Judge. Salaries may be paid annually or in equal installments as determined by the Village Board, but no Judge may be paid a salary for that portion of any term during which portion the Judge has not executed the official bond or official oath as required by Wis. Stats. § 755.03, and filed under Wis. Stats. § 19.01(4)(c), as amended.
(e) Bond; oath. The Municipal Judge shall execute and file with the Clerks of the Circuit Court for Barron and Polk Counties the oath prescribed by Wis. Stats. § 755.03, and an official bond in such an amount as shall be fixed by the Village Board.
(f) Procedure in Municipal Court.
(1) The procedure in Municipal Court for the village shall be as provided in this section and state law, including, but not by way of limitation, Wis. Stats. Chapters 62, 66, 755, and 800.
(2) The Municipal Court shall be open as determined by the Municipal Judge.
(3) The Municipal Judge shall keep his or her office and hold court in the Municipal Building.
(4) If the Municipal Judge is temporarily absent, sick, or disabled, the provisions of Wis. Stats. § 800.06(1) shall apply, and if the Municipal Judge becomes incompetent, unable, or fails to act, or in the event of a vacancy, the provisions of Wis. Stats. § 800.06(2) shall apply. Any substitute Municipal Judge designated or assigned hereunder shall be compensated as authorized by the Village Board. The Municipal Judge shall satisfy all continuing education requirements for municipal judges.
(5) Upon the proper and timely written request for substitution of the Municipal Judge, the provisions of Wis. Stats. § 800.05 shall apply.
(6) The procedures of the Municipal Court shall be in accord with the applicable state statutes and village ordinances. The Court shall abide by the State Rules of Evidence and shall abide by the Uniform State Traffic Deposit Schedule. In non-traffic matters, the Chief of Police shall draft a bond schedule, which shall become effective upon approval by the Village Board. No bond shall exceed the maximum penalty which could be imposed for the ordinance violation.
(g) Fees.
(1) Bonds for appearance, partial payments, and other funds collected by the Court shall be treated as escrow funds and deposited with the Village Administrator, Clerk, or highest elected official, as appropriate.
(2) The Clerk of the Municipal Court shall collect all forfeitures and costs in any action or proceeding before him or her, and shall pay over such moneys to the Village Administrator, Clerk, or highest elected official, as appropriate, not later than the end of each month. At the time of payment, the Municipal Court Clerk shall report to the Village Administrator, Clerk, or highest elected official, as appropriate, the title of the action, the offense for which the forfeiture was imposed, and the total amount of the forfeiture, fees, penalty assessments, and costs, if any. The Village Administrator, Clerk, or highest elected official, as appropriate, shall disburse the fees as provided in Wis. Stats. § 814.65, and disburse any penalty assessments pursuant to Wis. Stats. § 66.0114(1)(b).
(h) Board may abolish Municipal Court. The Village Board may, by ordinance or by law, abolish the Municipal Court at the end of any term for which the Judge has been elected.
(i) Statutes adopted by reference. Wis. Stats. Chapters 755 and 800, are hereby adopted by reference.
(j) Contempt of court.
(1) The Municipal Judge may punish for contempt of the Municipal Court for the village persons guilty of either of the following acts.
a. Intentional misconduct in the presence of the Court which interferes with a court proceeding or with the administration of justice, or which impairs the due respect for the Court.
b. Intentional disobedience, resistance, or obstruction of authority, process, or order of the Municipal Court.
(2) a. No person may be punished for contempt before a Municipal Judge until an opportunity has been given to the person to be heard in his or her defense.
b. If the contempt alleged involves disrespect or criticism of a municipal judge, that judge is disqualified from presiding at the trial of contempt unless the person charged consents to the judge presiding at the trial. For the purpose of hearing a person’s defense, the Municipal Judge may, if the alleged defendant does not appear for trial, issue a warrant for the person to be brought before the Municipal Judge.
(k) Joint Municipal Court.
(1) Municipal Court created. Pursuant to the authority granted by Wis. Stats. Chapter 755, there is hereby created and established a Joint Municipal Court to be designated “Municipal Court for the Village of Turtle Lake, Village of Almena, and Town of Almena,” said court to become operative and function on August 1, 2005 (August 1, 2007 for the Town of Almena).
(2) Municipal Judge.
a. Qualifications. The Joint Court shall be under the jurisdiction of and presided over by a Municipal Judge who resides in one of the municipalities that is a party to the agreement forming this Joint Court.
b. Oath and bond. The Judge shall, after election or appointment to fill a vacancy, take and file the official oath as prescribed in Wis. Stats. § 757.02(1), and at the same time execute and file an official bond in the amount of $1,000. The Judge shall not act until the oath and bond have been filed as required by Wis. Stats. § 19.01(4)(c), and the requirements of Wis. Stats. § 755.03(2) have been complied with.
c. Salary. The salary of the Municipal Judge shall be fixed by the Boards of the municipalities that are parties to the agreement which shall be in lieu of fees and costs. No salary shall be paid for any time during the term during which such Judge has not executed the official bond or official oath, as required by Wis. Stats. § 755.03, and filed pursuant to Wis. Stats. § 19.01 (4)(c). The municipalities may by separate ordinance allocate funds for the administration of the Municipal Court pursuant to Wis. Stats. § 66.0301.
(3) Elections.
a. Term. The Municipal Judge shall be elected at large in the spring election in even-numbered years for a term of two years commencing on May 1. The first election for the joint court shall be in 2008. Until then the current Municipal Judge for the village shall preside. All candidates for the position of Municipal Judge shall be nominated by nomination papers as provided in Wis. Stats. § 8.10, and selection at a primary election if such is held as provided in Wis. Stats. § 8.11. The state elections board shall serve as filing officer for the candidates.
b. Electors. Electors in all municipalities that are parties to the agreement shall be eligible to vote for the Judge.
(4) Jurisdiction.
a. The Municipal Court shall have jurisdiction over incidents occurring on or after August 1, 2005 (August 1, 2007 for Town of Almena) as provided in Article VII, § 14 of the Wisconsin Constitution, Wis. Stats. §§ 755.045 and 755.05, and as other provided by state law. In addition, it shall have exclusive jurisdiction over actions in the municipalities that are parties to the agreement seeking to impose forfeitures for violations of municipal ordinances, resolutions and by-laws.
b. The Municipal Judge may issue civil warrants to enforce matters under the jurisdiction of the Municipal Court under Wis. Stats. §§ 755.045(2) and 66.0119.
c. The Municipal Court has jurisdiction over juvenile offenders when a municipality that is party to the agreement enacts an ordinance under the authority of Wis. Stats. § 938.17(2)(cm).
(5) Municipal Court.
a. Hours. The Joint Municipal court shall be in session at the Village Hall during regular operating hours of that hall or at such location and at such times as deemed appropriate by the governing bodies of the municipalities that are parties to the agreement and the Municipal Judge.
b. Employees. The Judge shall, in writing, appoint such clerks and deputy clerks are authorized and funded by the Boards of the municipalities that are parties to the agreement.
(6) Collection of forfeitures and costs.
a. The Municipal Judge may impose punishment and sentences as provided by Wis. Stats. Chapters 800 and 938, and as provided in the ordinances of the municipalities that are parties to the agreement. The Joint Municipal Court shall be responsible for collection of all forfeitures, fees, costs, and surcharges imposed.
b. The Treasurer of the village shall be responsible for preparing and filing the required monthly financial reports with the Department of Administration, and for remitting the costs and fees payable to the state and county.
c. Each municipality shall receive the forfeitures and costs from the cases arising within its boundaries. Such monies shall be paid to the Treasurer of the municipality within which the case arose each quarter. At the time of the payment, the Municipal Court shall report to the treasurer of that municipality the title of the action, the nature of the offenses, and total amount of judgments imposed in actions and proceedings in which such monies were collected.
d. The Village of Almena and the Town of Almena will be billed quarterly for the following charges related to the administration of each action handled by the Joint Municipal Court:
Category 1 | $20 for each citation which is not contested, including forfeitures of deposits and requests for time to pay. |
Category 2 | $30 for each citation requiring notice of judgment, requests for additional time to pay (regardless of how many such requests are made), not guilty pleas, and pre-trial conferences, suspensions, writs, and warrants. |
Category 3 | $40 for trials and reopened cases. |
e. The maximum charge for administering an action or case shall be $40. If an action or case moves from one category to another, only an additional $10 will be charged for each such move up.
f. Additional costs will be charged to the Town of Almena and the Village of Almena for police time in court appearances, witness fees and mileage, interpreters, and the like.
(7) Contempt of Court. The Municipal Judge, after affording an opportunity to the person accused to be heard in defense, may impose a sanction authorized under Wis. Stats. § 800.12, and may impose a forfeiture therefore not to exceed $50 or upon nonpayment of the forfeiture and the assessments thereon, a jail sentence not to exceed seven days.
(8) Prosecutor. All Court matters requiring a prosecutor shall be handled by the municipal attorney for the Village of Turtle Lake. No charge will be made to the Village of Almena or the Town of Almena for the services of the prosecutor.
(9) Abolition. The Municipal Court hereby established shall not be abolished while the Wis. Stats. § 755.01(4) agreement is in effect.
(Prior Code, § 2-3-11) (Ord. 07-01, passed 7-16-2007)
Statutory reference:
Similar provisions, see Wis. Stats. Chapters 755 and 800