The court where you pay your speeding ticket could change

The way courts are operated in Macon-Bibb County could undergo a seismic shift.

Discussions are underway among some officials about having the State Court of Bibb County absorb Municipal Court operations, thus ending the court that for years handled certain cases with the former city of Macon and now Macon-Bibb County. The potential change — which would eventually have to be made by the state legislature — has one judge saying he was caught off guard by the latest development while another judge says a takeover could reap benefits to the county.

In Macon-Bibb County, Municipal Court mostly handles minor traffic offenses like speeding and ordinance violations. State Court takes on civil cases, more serious traffic offenses such as DUI, and many other misdemeanor cases like simple battery and shoplifting.

But whether the proposed change would receive support from Municipal Court Judge Bobby Faulkner remains up in the air.

“I had heard rumors that people were talking about it and (Mayor Robert Reichert) suggested (State Court Judge) Bill Adams and I get together ... but I didn’t know anything was real serious until (Wednesday),” said Faulkner, the only full-time Municipal Court judge.

He added he has not had enough time to digest the plan. In an email exchange between Faulkner and Adams that was also forwarded to the county commission, Faulkner expressed some skepticism about the reasoning behind the change. He stated input from county and state leaders is needed.

“I’m not saying that it’s a good idea,” Faulkner told the Telegraph last week. “I’m not saying it’s a bad idea, but at this point and time I can’t endorse it. It’s a big deal. There are a lot of people that could lose their jobs.”

Concerns during consolidation

When Macon and Bibb County leaders were preparing for consolidation in 2013, the way the courts would be operated was one topic of discussion. At that time, however, it was not practical for state court to handle both caseloads, Adams said.

But now, after nearly three years into consolidation, it appears it would be more feasible having one court, Adams said.

“We’ve done the homework and feel like this is something that would be beneficial to the county,” he said.

In an email to Faulkner, Adams outlined the proposal prior to meeting with the judge.

Adams told The Telegraph he understands why Faulkner would be upset, but he and some other court officials “felt like we needed to have our ducks in a row about whether it makes sense to us” before meeting with Faulkner.

The increased caseload, Adams said, could be handled in a third courtroom built during courthouse renovations. A merger would save money for the county, in part by not having to renovate additional space inside the courthouse for Municipal Court, which currently meets inside the Macon-Bibb County Government Center.

The sheriff’s office also would not have to provide additional security at the government center, and there is more space to support the extra foot traffic in the courthouse because of the relocation of the offices for the tax commissioner, probation and juvenile court, Adams said.

If the courts do merge, the number of cases that go before State Court in a year could drastically increase. Faulkner noted that in 2014, State Court reported 5,743 traffic and misdemeanor cases while nearly 16,600 were handled by Municipal Court with fewer personnel resources, he wrote in the email to Adams.

To help manage the extra cases, a part-time judge could be appointed. Three deputy Municipal Court clerk positions would then be moved under State Court, which could handle the new load by June 2017, Adams said in the email.

Any decision would ultimately need to be signed off by officials, he said.

“There’s every concern here for employees of the Municipal Court Clerk’s Office,” Adams said. “We hope we can put them to work here as much as possible.”

Reichert is in favor of examining the benefits of a merger but has not made a decision on which route should be taken, Macon-Bibb County spokesman Chris Floore said.

“The mayor would support it if it makes sense from a public efficiency standpoint,” he said.

Commissioner Scotty Shepherd said he was unaware of a possible court merger until he received the emails between Faulkner and Adams.

“It took me totally by surprise because I didn’t know any of that was going on,” he said.

This story was originally published October 10, 2016 at 11:55 AM with the headline "The court where you pay your speeding ticket could change."