Town of Grand Chute, WI Court, Municipal

Municipal Judge qualifications. The Municipal Judge, and all candidates for the position of Municipal Judge, shall be licensed to practice law in the State of Wisconsin, and be a qualified elector of the Town of Grand Chute. In cases requiring substitution of the Town’s Municipal Judge, the substitute judge need only meet the qualifications of the municipality in which that judge has been elected.

[Added 11-15-2011 by Ord. No. 2011-27]

Election; term. The Municipal Judge shall be elected for a four-year term in accordance with § 110-1 of this Code. Midterm vacancies in the office of Municipal Judge shall be filled pursuant to § 800.06, Wis. Stats.

[Amended 12-20-2011 by Ord. No. 2011-30; 12-20-2011 by Ord. No. 2011-42]

Salary. The Municipal Judge shall receive a salary set by the Town Board. No salary shall be paid to the Judge for any time during his term for which he has not executed and filed his/her official bond and oath as required by Subsection D of this section.

[Amended 12-20-2011 by Ord. No. 2011-30]

Bond; oath. The Municipal Judge shall execute and file with the Clerk of the Courts for Outagamie County the oath prescribed by § 757.02, Wis. Stats., and a bond in the penal sum of $10,000.

Jurisdiction. The Municipal Judge shall have jurisdiction as provided by law and § 755.045, Wis. Stats., and exclusive jurisdiction of violations of Town ordinances, resolutions and bylaws.

§ 28-3 Court hours, location and procedure.

Hours. The Municipal Court for the Town shall be open as determined by order of the Municipal Judge.

Location. The Municipal Judge shall keep his office and hold court at the Grand Chute Town Hall located at 1900 Grand Chute Boulevard, Grand Chute, Wisconsin.

[Amended 12-20-2011 by Ord. No. 2011-30]

Procedure. The procedure in Municipal Court for the Town shall be as provided by this section and state law, including, without limitation because of enumeration, Chs. 800 and 755 and §§ 23.66 to 23.99, 778.14, 778.15, 778.18 and 345.20 to 345.53, Wis. Stats.

§ 28-4 Collection and return of forfeitures.

[Amended 12-20-2011 by Ord. No. 2011-30]

The Municipal Judge shall collect all forfeitures, penalty assessments, fees and taxable costs in any action or proceeding before him and shall pay over such moneys to the Town Treasurer within 30 days after receipt of the money by the Municipal Court. At such time the Municipal Judge shall also report to the Town Treasurer the title, nature of offenses and total number of judgments imposed in actions and proceedings in which such moneys were collected.

§ 28-5 Contempt of court.

[Amended 12-20-2011 by Ord. No. 2011-30]

In this section, "contempt of court" means any of the following intentional acts:

(1)

Misconduct in the presence of the court that interferes with the court proceeding or with the administration of justice, or that impairs the respect due the court.

(2)

Refusal of a witness to appear without reasonable excuse.

The Municipal Judge may impose a forfeiture in an amount as prescribed in the Uniform Forfeiture and Bond Schedules for a contempt of court.

For a contempt of court described in Subsection A(1), the Municipal Judge may impose imprisonment in the county jail for not more than seven days and impose a forfeiture. These penalties shall be imposed immediately after the contempt of court has occurred and only under the following conditions:

(1)

For the purpose of preserving order in the court and protecting the authority and dignity of the court.

(2)

After allowing the person who committed the contempt of court an opportunity to address the court.

For a contempt of court described in Subsection A(2), the Municipal Judge may do any of the following:

(1)

Issue a warrant to bring the witness before the court for the contempt and to testify.

(2)

In addition to ordering the witness to pay a forfeiture under Subsection B, the Judge may order the witness to pay all costs of the witness's apprehension.

§ 28-6 Stipulations and deposits.

Deposit schedule to be established. The Municipal Judge shall establish and submit to the Town Board for approval, in accordance with § 800.037, Wis. Stats., a schedule of deposits for violations of Town ordinances, resolutions and bylaws, except traffic regulations, which are governed by § 345.26, Wis. Stats., and boating violations governed by §§ 23.66 and 23.67, Wis. Stats. When approved by the Board, such deposit schedule shall be posted in the office of the Municipal Court Clerk.

[Amended 8-17-2010 by Ord. No. 2010-10; 12-20-2011 by Ord. No. 2011-30]

Stipulation and deposit in lieu of court appearance. Persons cited for violations of Town ordinances, resolutions or bylaws for which a deposit has been established under this section shall be permitted to make a stipulation of no contest and a deposit in lieu of court appearance as provided in §§ 800.03, 800.04 and 800.09, Wis. Stats.

Traffic and boating deposits. The deposit schedule established by the Wisconsin Judicial Conference and the procedures set forth in Chs. 23 and 345, Wis. Stats., shall apply to stipulations and deposits for violations of traffic regulations enacted in accordance with § 345.27, Wis. Stats., and boating regulations enacted in accordance with § 30.77, Wis. Stats.

[Amended 12-20-2011 by Ord. No. 2011-30]

When not permitted. Stipulations and deposits shall not be permitted after initial appearance or in cases of contempt under § 28-5.