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HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrdinance 4416 OFFICIAL RECORD ORDINANCE NO. � /G CITY SECRETARY AN ORDINANCE PROVIDING FOR THE CREATION OF TWO CORPORATION FT' WORTH, TEX. COURTS,FOR THE CITY OF FORT WORTH, TO BE DESIGNATED AS COR- PORATION COURT NO. ONE AND CORPORATION COURT NO. TWO; PRO- VIDING FOR APPOINTMENT OF TWO JUDGES TO SERVE AS REGULAR JUDGES OF THE CORPORATION COURTS OF THE CITY OF FORT WORTH; PROVIDING FOR DESIGNATION OF A CLERK FOR SAID COURTS; DE- FINING THE DUTIES OF THE CLERK; SETTING UP A TRAFFIC FINES BUREAU; PROVIDING FOR APPOINTMENT OF ASSISTANT CITY AT- TORNEYS; PROVIDING FOR THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE AFFAIRS OF SAID COURTS BY SAID JUDGES; REPEALING ALL ORDINANCES IN CON- FLICT HEREWITH; PROVIDING A SAVINGS CLAUSE; AND DECLARING AN EMERGENCY. WHEREAS, the population of the City of Fort Worth at this time is in excess of 250,000 inhabitants according to the last preceding United States Census; and, WHEREAS, Article 1200a of Vernon's Annotated Civil Statutes of the State of Texas authorizes the establishment of tvo or more Corporation Courts in incorporated cities having in excess of such population; and, WHEREAS, the volume of cases arising under City ordinances and State lays cognizable within the jurisdiction of the present single Cor- poration Court of the City of Fort Worth has increased to such an extent that such single court is unable to dispose of the voluminous amount of litigation currently pending; and, WHEREAS, it is deemed vise and expedient and in the best inter- ests of the public that an additional Corporation Court be created and provision be made for the appointment of an additional Judge; NOW, THERE- FORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT WORTH, TEKAS: SECTION 1. Pursuant to the provisions of Article 1200a of Vernon's Annotated Civil Statutes of the State of Texas and the applicable provisions of the Charter and Ordinances of the City of Fort Worth, there are hereby created and designated two Corporation Courts for the City of Fort Worth, to be known as Corporation Court No. One and Corporation Court No. Two, for the trial of misdemeanor offenses arising vithin the corporate limits now or here- after established by said City and for the trial of such other offenses as may be provided by the ordinances of the City of Fort Worth or the lases of the State of Texas. Each of said courts shall have and exercise concurrent jurisdiction within the city limits of said City, and such juris- diction shall be the same as is now, or may hereafter be, conferred upon all corporation courts by the general laws of this State. The powers and duties of each of such courts shall be those defined and designated by the lasts of Texas and the Charter and Ordinances of the City of Fort Worth. SECTION 2. There are hereby created and recreated two offices of Judge or Recorder, who shall meet the qualifications specified in the Charter of the City of Fort Worth. The said Judges may transfer cases from one court to another, and the Judge of either court may exchange his bench and pre- side over the other court. The Mayor shall have the power to appoint, for a temporary period, such additional or substitute judges of the Corporation Courts as are deemed necessary. The Mayor, With the confirmation of the City Council, shell annually designate one of the two Judges as Chief .Tudge. In such capacity, said Chief Judge shall prescribe the conditions under uhich the additional or substitute judges shall sit as Judge in either of the Corporation Courts; further, he shall direct the assignment and trial of cases and order the transfer thereof to or from either court. The Judge of either Corporation Court shall exercise exclusive judicial authority over the judgments, orders and decrees of his particular court and the trial of cases therein. SECTION 3. The City Attorney shall appoint, subject to the approval of the City Council, a sufficient number of suitable and qualified persons to hold the position of Assistant City Attorney, who shall be charged with the duty -2- of prosecuting all cases in the Corporation Courts and be subject to such other assignments as the City Attorney may direct. In order to coordinate the prosecution of all cases in the Corporation Courts and the appeals taken therefrom, the City Attorney shall designate one of said attorneys as Chief Prosecutor. SECTION 4. There is hereby created the office of Clerk of the Corporation Courts. The holder of said office shall be Clerk for both Corporation Courts. Said Clerk and the deputies appointed by him shall keep the Minutes of the Courts, prepare the dockets, and perform such other duties as may be necessary for the efficient administration of said Corporation Courts. Appeals from either court shall be taken in the same manner as is now provided by law for appeals to be taken from the judgments rendered by the Judge of the Corporation Court. SECTION 5. In addition, said Clerk shall perform the duties required of him by the Charter and applicable State laws and shall be appointed in com- pliance therewith. All powers and duties imposed upon the Clerk by the Charter, Ordinances and applicable State laws may be performed by any deputy under the direction of said Clerk. The Clerk and the deputies ap- pointed by him shall have the power to administer the oath in connection with the discharge of the duties of said office. It shall be the further duty of the Clerk to provide for the efficient administration of the Cor- poration Courts System of the City of Fort Worth and to carry on such duties in compliance with such directives as have been heretofore set forth and as may be hereafter issued by the City Council. SECTION 6. The Clerk shall preserve all court papers, complaints and other of- ficial papers of said office and shall keep an accurate set of IvInutes of the Courts showing the filing and disposition of every case heard. Said -3- Minutes shall be kept in a permanent, bound book or books. The dockets of said Courts shall show: (1) The style of the action; (2) The nature of the offense charged; (3) The date the warrant was issued and the return made thereon; (4) The time when the examination or trial was had; and, if a trial, whether it was with or without the aid of a jury; (5) The verdict of the jury, if any; (6) The judgment, order or decree of the Court; (7) Motion for new trial, if any, and the decision thereon; (8) If appeal was taken; and (9) The date of the judgment and the manner in which same was taken. SECTION 7. There is hereby established by the Corporation Courts System a bureau for the payment of fines,. This division shall be known as the "Traffic Fines Bureau." A Bureau Clerk shall be appointed by the Clerk of the Corporation Courts, together with such deputies as may be deemed necessary. Said Bureau Clerk shall be under the direction and control of the Clerk of the Corporation Courts. The City Council shall prescribe the amount of the official.fidelity bond that the Bureau Clerk shall execute in favor of the City of Fort Worth. The premium of such bond shall be paid by the City. Said Bureau Clerk shall be a duly qualified Notary Public. SECTION 8. In the event a person to whom a ticket or summons has been issued for a traffic violation desires to enter a plea of guilty and pay the pre- determined fine set by order of the Judge for the violation charged, the Bureau Clerk or his deputy shall collect the amount so set. Each fine col- lected shall be accompanied by a written plea of guilty and a waiver of -4- the right to appear before a Judge of the Corporation Courts. [hen said plea of guilty is received, it shall be recorded and, when signed by the Judge, shall be taken as a final ,judgment for all purposes. In the event a person who has been issued a traffic ticket or summons desires to enter e plea before a Judge of the Corporation Courts, he shall enter such plea in open court. Upon a plea of not guilty, the defendant shall be referred to the Clerk of the Courts or his deputy, who shall set the case for trial. In the event the defendant desires to enter a plea of guilty, he may do so and explain to the Judge the mitigating circumstances, if any. SECTION 9. In the event of the appeal of a case from the Corporation Courts to the County Criminal Court or such other court in which an appeal may lie, the Clerk of-the Courts shall cause a transcript to be made of said case. The transcript shall be delivered by the Clerk of the Corporation Courts to the County Clerk or his deputy, who is authorized by law to receive such appeals. The Clerk of the Corporation Courts shall procure from the County Clerk or his deputy a receipt showing that he has received the appeal in the particular case, giving the number of the case assigned on the docket of the appellate court and the style of said cause. A full copy of each trans- cript shall be retained by the Clerk of the Corporation Courts as a part of the official records of said Courts. SECTION 10. No court costs shall be assessed in, or charged against, any cause pending in the Corporation Courts except as follows: (a) In cases where the defendant fails to appear in answer to the ticket or summons issued to him and he is adjudged guilty, the Judge, in his discretion, may assess, as a part of his ,judgment, court costs for all or any items incurred for costs in amounts fixed by Texas statutes for similar items incurred in the Justice Courts of the State of Texas, including -5- the usual mileage and other fees of the official serving process upon a defendant. (b) In all cases where the defendant calls for a jury trial and then is adjudged guilty, the ,judgment, in the discretion of the Judge, may include a jury fee not in ex- cess of that provided by the statutes of the State of Texas for Justice Courts. (c) In the event a case is appealed from one of the Cor- poration Courts and the ,judgment of said Court is, by virtue of dismissal of the appeal or otherwise, thereafter enforceable as thejudgment of said Corporation Court, there shall be as- sessed as items of court costs which have accrued at the time the case thus appealed is returned to said Corporation Court for enforcement of the ,judgment, an amount not to exceed Fifteen Dollars ($15.00); provided, however, that if this amount shall be greater than the amount of court costs authorized to be as- sessed under Texas statutes for similar costs in the Justice Courts, then no more than the amount authorized to be charged by said statutes shall be assessed. Further, all ,judgments of the Corporation Courts hereafter entered shall be construed to provide, whether expressly so reciting or not, for the payment of these items of costs which may accrue in the event of an ap- peal and the return of a case after such an appeal. SECTION 11. It shall be the duty of the Clerk of the Corporation Courts to pre- serve the records of said Courts for a period of one year following the final disposition of all causes; however, the Minutes of the Courts, bound in a permanent volume, showing the final disposition of every cause in said Courts, shall be filed and preserved as a permanent record to be used for such purposes as are authorized by law. -6- SECTION 12. Complaints shall be filed with the Corporation Courts in such man- ner as to provide equal distribution of cases between the two Courts. SECTION 13. Except as modified by the terms of this ordinance, the procedure before such courts and the appeals therefrom shall be governed by the gen- eral laws applicable to all corporation courts. SECTION 14. It is hereby declared unlawful for any employee of the City of Fort Worth to be involved, directly or indirectly, in the defense of any person charged with the violation of an ordinance of the City or a criminal law of the State, except to give evidence in behalf of a person so charged with violating any such ordinance or criminal law. SECTION 15. This ordinance is adopted pursuant to the provisions of the appli- cable statutes of the State of Texas, and all ordinances and parts of ordinances of the City of Fort Worth in conflict herewith are hereby ex- pressly repealed, but only to the extent of such conflict. SECTION 16. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase of this ordi- nance is for any reason held to be unconstitutional, the validity of the remaining portions shall not be affected thereby, it being the intent of the governing body, in adopting this ordinance, to provide that no portion shall become inoperative by reason of the invalidity of any other portion. SECTION 17. In the interest of providing for better administration of the af- fairs of the Corporation Courts of the City of Fort Worth, it is deemed expedient that additional facilities and personnel be acquired, and it is hereby declared that an emergency exists, in the immediate preservation of -7- • r. o- ♦ f the public peace and safety, requiring that this ordinance take effect from and after its passage, and it is accordingly so ordained. APPROVED AS/TO FORM AND LEGALITY; S. G. Johndroe, Jr. City Attorney -8- f CITY OF FORT WORTH TEXAS I', OFFICE OF THE CITY MANAGER Communication to Mayor and Council No. GO-1 December 30, 1960 Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council Re: Establishment of a Second City of Fort Worth Corporation Court Mrs. McKnight and Gentlemen; ' Attached is a proposed ordinance creating the second Corporation Court provided in the 1960-61 budget. The ordinance also provides for the appointment of a judge for the second'court by the Council , and provides for yearly designation of one of the judges as Chief Judge. The City Secretary, who is Clerk of both courts, is given responsibility for proper administration of the court system and carrying out policies adopted by the City Council . The ordinance further authorizes the operation of the< Court's Fines Bureau with authority to collect fines on a plea of guilty at a rate 'established by the ,judges. It is recommended that this ordinance be adopted. Remodelling work in the Old Post Office Building should progress far enough to permit operation of two courts by February I , 1961 . Appointment of a second judge would be desirable sometime before that date. Respectfully submitted, 4 LPC;ih L . 'Cooking am City Manager CITY OF FORT WORTH, TEXAS THE SUBJECT MATTER OF THIS M.&C.C. WAS P111 F~T'.7 603 U . y COUIICIL AND WAS PP ., � s? City Secretary