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HomeMy WebLinkAboutORDINANCE NO. 06-11-10ORDINANCE NO. 06-11-10 STATE OF GEORGIA '""' COUNTY OF FULTON AN ORDINANCE TO ADOPT AND APPROVE CHAPTER 4. MUNICIPAL COURT, AND PROVIDING FOR INCLUSION AND IDENTIFICATION IN THE CODE OF ORDINANCES FOR THE CITY OF MILTON, GEORGIA TO BE REFERENCED IN THE FUTURE AS CHAPTER 4 (MUNICIPAL COURT) AS ATTACHED HERETO AND INCORPORATED HEREIN The Council of the City of Milton hereby ordains while in special session on the 21St day of November, 2006 at 4:30 pm. as follows: SECTION 1. That the Ordinance relating to Municipal Court is hereby adopted and approved; and is attached hereto as if fully set forth herein; and, SECTION 2. That this Ordinance shall be designated as Chapter 4 of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Milton, Georgia; and, SECTION 3. That this Ordinance shall become effective on December 1, 2006. I"PON ORDAINED this the 21" day of November, 2006. Approved: Joe Lockwo d or Attest: Page 1 of 1 Chanter 4: Municipal Court Article 1: General Provisions Section 1: Creation of the Court In accordance with Article V, Judicial Branch, Section 5. 10, Municipal Court of the Charter, the City hereby creates the Municipal Court of the City of Milton. The powers and jurisdiction of said Court are described in Article V, Judicial Branch of the Charter. Section 2: Judges (a) In accordance with Article V, Judicial Branch, Section 5.11, Judges, the Council shall appoint a chief judge and such part-time, full-time, or stand-by judges as needed by ordinance. Compensation shall be fixed by the Council. (b) The Municipal Court Chief Judge shall serve a term of four (4) years, coincident with the term of the mayor and may be reappointed to consecutive terms thereafter. (d) Judges appointed for the Municipal Court may be removed from office in accordance with Article V, Judicial Branch, Section 5.11, Judges by a vote of five members of the city council or •M- upon action taken by the Judicial Qualification Commission. (e) Municipal Court Judges, in addition to the powers conferred upon them by the Charter, shall have the powers as conferred upon Magistrates by O.C.G.A. 15-10-2 and O.C.G.A.36-32-3. Section 3: Additional Personnel (a) Clerk of the Court. The City Manager shall appoint the Municipal Court Clerk, who shall serve at the pleasure of the City Manager. The Clerk of the Court shall also serve as Administrator of the Court. (b) Police Officers of the City of Milton Police Department, the Fulton County Police Department, or the Fulton County Sheriff's Department or any other law enforcement officer may execute warrants and other writs in furtherance of the Court's jurisdiction and orders. (c) Bailiff. At least one Police Department Officer or Officer from the Fulton County Sheriff's Department will serve as a Bailiff whenever the Municipal Court is in session. (d) Solicitor. In accordance with Section 4.12 of the Charter, the City Attorney may be the prosecuting officer or solicitor in the Municipal Court. The City Council may also, from time to time, appoint and contract with other attorneys who are members of the State Bar of Georgia to o^ serve as a prosecuting attorney in Municipal Court. The compensation of said attorney or attorneys shall be determined by the Council. Page 1 of 5 Section 4: Additional support (a) Indigent Defense. The City of Milton shall provide indigent defendants with counsel as provided by state law. (b) Translator. The City of Milton may provide translation services as required by state law. Section 5: Court Sessions The Court shall be in session at such times and dates as determined by the Clerk of the Court, as court administrator, to keep the dockets current. Section 6: Court Fees (a) In accordance with Article V, Judicial Branch, of the Charter, the council has authority to establish a schedule of reasonable fees to defray the cost of operation of the municipal court. (b) The Council shall set City fines for violations of City ordinances. Article 2: Trials and Judgments Section 1: Rules The Municipal Court Judges shall adopt specific rules of procedure which must be approved by the Mayor and City Council. No rules shall be inconsistent with the laws of Georgia or the Constitution of the United States. Such rules shall be made available on the City website or by other means determined by the Council. Section 2: Contempt of Court The Court may find persons in contempt of court and punish said persons in accordance with Section 5.13 of the Charter. Section 3: Fines (a) For fines that may be due by any defendant, execution may be issued by the Court Clerk and collected as provided by law. The Municipal Court shall have the discretion to enter fines consistent with this Code of Ordinances, Georgia and federal law. (b) Persons charged with traffic violations or other offenses as specified by the judge may, prior to the time for their court appearance, plead guilty in writing and pay to the City as their fine the W^ amount set as the appearance bond for the offense charged. Those persons charged with driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs and other serious offenses, as determined by the Page 2 of 5 Municipal Court Judge, shall be required in all cases to appear before the court for disposition of the case. Section 4: Sentences In addition to any applicable fines, and upon a judgment or plea of guilty or pre-trial diversion, the Municipal Court Judge may impose sentence of confinement, compulsory work, or both; commit the defendant to confinement, compulsory work or both; suspend the execution of the sentence in whole or in part; place the defendant on probation; or defer the execution of the sentence or any portion or portions thereof to one or more fixed dates in the future. The court may punish for violations within its jurisdiction not exceeding a fine allowable by state law or imprisonment for not exceeding state law, or both; except as otherwise provided by this Code of Ordinances or State Law. Section S: Appeals Unless specified elsewhere in the Code or Charter, all appeals from decisions of the Municipal Court shall be appealable, by right of certiorari, to the Superior Court of Fulton County under the laws of Georgia regulating the granting and issuance of writs of certiorari. Article 3• Bail Section 1: General Provisions Bail and bond considerations must be consistent with Article V, Judicial Branch, of the Charter and laws of the State of Georgia. Section 2: Minor Traffic Offenses (a) Pursuant to O.C.G.A. § 17-6-11 any person cited for a traffic offense shall be released in lieu of bail upon showing his or her drivers license. This provision does not apply to any charge of driving under the influence or other serious offenses designated by the municipal judge. (b) All persons arrested or notified by citation or ticket of parking violations shall be released on their own recognizance. Section 3: Professional Bondsmen No professional bondsman shall be accepted as surety on a bail bond unless he holds a current business license in the City, is approved by the Chief of Police, and has fully complied with all other City requirements for bonding companies. WW" Section 4: Failure or Refusal to Give Bond Page 3 of 5 WM4 If the accused or a witness shall fail or refuse to give the bond and security as required under this Article, the person so failing or refusing may be confined or kept under guard, Oftw , so as to be present to abide the trial or to testify as the case may be. Article 4: Court Procedures Section 1: Issuance of summons Any member of the department of police, the solicitor or assistant solicitor of the municipal court, in all cases where a complaint is made or information is obtained of any violation of any provision of this Code or other laws or ordinances of the city, shall issue a summons, directed to the accused, requiring the accused to appear before the municipal court to answer this charge. The summons shall designate the time and place of trial and shall be signed by the member of the department of police, solicitor, or assistant solicitor issuing it, and a copy thereof shall be served upon the accused either personally or by leaving the copy at the accused's place of residence. Section 2: Failing to appear to answer summons It shall be unlawful for any defendant lawfully summoned to answer charges in the municipal court to either fail, neglect, or refuse to appear at the time and place specified in the summons or fail to provide a satisfactory explanation for this absence. The trial may be continued to such time as the municipal court may direct, and the court shall issue an order requiring the police chief or other members of the department of police to arrest the defendant and bring the defendant before the court to answer both the initial charges and the charge for failing to appear at trial. The chief of corrections shall keep the defendant in custody until the defendant is brought before the court, unless the defendant posts bond for appearance, as provided by law. Section 3: Issuance of subpoenas Whenever the attendance of any witness may be required before the municipal court to establish any fact, the clerk of the municipal court shall issue a subpoena directed to the witness, stating the time and place of trial and the parties to the case, which shall be served as other process by the police chief or other police officers. Section 4: Witness failing or refusing to obey subpoena. If any person lawfully summoned as a witness before the municipal court shall fail, neglect, or refuse to attend the trial for which the person has been summoned or fail to provide a satisfactory explanation for this absence, the person may be cited for contempt and be fined in a sum not to exceed the maximum amount allowed by state law. If the cause is continued because of the absence of this person, the court may issue attachment against the person requiring the person to show cause on the day appointed for trial why the person should not be cited for contempt. The police chief or other police officer shall, by virtue of the attachment, arrest the person and keep the person in Page 4 of 5 custody until the person is brought before the court, unless the person posts bond for appearance, as provided by law. Section 5: Contempt Any person who, during a sitting of the municipal court, shall be guilty of contempt of court or who refuses to abide by an order of the court or sentence, may be punished as provided in Article V, Judicial Branch, Section 5.13, Powers of the Charter. Page 5 of 5