The Salt Lake City Council has approved an agreement with state judicial officials that is intended to improve the courts' handling of city misdemeanor cases.
The 4-0 vote on Friday comes several weeks after the mayor and City Council threatened to pull misdemeanor cases out of the state court system because they argued some judges routinely ignored or delayed cases.But Utah Supreme Court Chief Justice Michael Zimmerman, 3rd District Judge Michael Murphy, 3rd Circuit Judge Robin Reese and interim Court Administrator Pamela Greenwood submitted a commitment to correct the problem.
The five-page memorandum calls for the 3rd Circuit Court to establish a Salt Lake City municipal division, consider possible legislation to create a specialized justice court, and meet with Salt Lake City representatives at least every six months.
"I'm pleased with the decision because it opens up a dialogue at the highest level," said Mayor Deedee Corradini. "They have come a long way, so we owe them a shot. If it works well, our dialogue will continue; if it doesn't we still have the opportunity to set up our own court."
Corradini sent the first warning to the state Judicial Council in May, when her budget message proposed taking class B misdemeanors from the 3rd Circuit into a city-run municipal court. Council members took the next step by giving the state their one-year notice to pull out.
Council members accused some judges of showing little interest in housing and zoning violations, which comprise only about 1 percent of the circuit court's calendar but play a vital role in preventing rundown neighborhoods.
"When the courts don't respond, a signal is sent to the community that those housing and zoning cases are not that important," said council chairman Stuart Reid.
Salt Lake City also squeezed an important concession from state court officials: that judges assigned to the Salt Lake City municipal court will receive training in such things as city ordinances before they begin deciding cases.
"We will take a serious look at housing and zoning cases and find ways to get people to comply with the law," said Myron March, deputy state court administrator. "This agreement kind of forces the issue."