[1]
Cross References — Officers generally, §115.010 et seq.; municipal judge to order sale of impounded animals, §205.310.
[Code 1974 §160.010; CC 1984 §9-21]
The Municipal Judge shall be appointed to his/her position by the Mayor, subject to the confirmation of the City Council, for a term as specified in Section 125.060.
[Code 1974 §160.020; CC 1984 §9-22]
The Municipal Judge shall hold his/her office for a period of two (2) years. If for any reason a Municipal Judge vacates his/her office, his/her successor should complete the term of office, even if the same be less than for two (2) years.
[Code 1974 §160.040; CC 1984 §9-23]
A. 
The Municipal Judge shall possess the following qualifications before he/she shall take office:
1. 
He/she must be a licensed attorney, qualified to practice law within the State.
2. 
He/she need not reside within the City, but must be a resident of the State.
3. 
He/she must be between the ages of twenty-five (25) and seventy-five (75) years.
4. 
He/she may serve as a Municipal Judge for any other municipality.
5. 
He/she may not hold any other office within the City Government but shall be considered holding a part-time position and, as such, may accept other employment.
[Code 1974 §160.030; CC 1984 §9-24]
A. 
The Municipal Judge shall vacate his/her office under the following circumstances:
1. 
Upon removal from office by the State Commission on Retirement, Removal and Discipline of Judges, as provided in Supreme Court Rule No. 12; or
2. 
Upon obtaining his/her seventy-fifth (75th) birthday.
[CC 1984 §9-25]
The compensation of the Municipal Judge and all other Municipal Court personnel shall not be dependent in any way upon the number of cases tried, the number of guilty verdicts reached, or the amount of fines imposed or collected.
[Code 1974 §§160.070, 160.080; CC 1984 §9-26]
A. 
The Municipal Judge shall be a conservator of the peace. He/she shall keep a docket in which he/she shall enter every case commenced before him/her and the proceedings therein and he/she shall keep such other records as may be required. Each docket and records shall be records of the Circuit Court. The Municipal Judge shall deliver the docket and records of the Municipal Court, and all books and papers pertaining to his/her office, to his/her successor in office or to the Presiding Judge of the Circuit.
B. 
The Municipal Judge shall be and is hereby authorized to:
1. 
Establish a Violations Bureau, as provided in the State Rules of Practice and Procedure for Municipal and Traffic Courts and in Section 479.050, RSMo.;
2. 
Administer oaths and enforce due obedience to all orders, rules and judgments by him/her, and fine and imprison for contempt committed before him/her while holding court, in the same manner and to the same extent as the Circuit Judge;
3. 
Commute the term of any sentence, stay execution of any fine or sentence, suspend any fine or sentence and make such other orders as he/she deems necessary or relative to any matter that may be pending in the Municipal Court;
4. 
Make and adopt such rules of practice and procedure as are necessary to implement and carry out the provisions of this Chapter, to make and adopt such rules of practice and procedure as are necessary to hear and decide matters pending before the Municipal Court, and to implement and carry out the provisions of the Rules of Practice and Procedure for Municipal and Traffic Courts. Any and all rules made or adopted hereunder may be annulled or amended by any ordinance limited to such purpose; provided that such ordinance does not violate or conflict with the provisions of the State Rules of Practice and Procedure for Municipal and Traffic Courts or State Statutes; and
5. 
Have such other powers, duties and privileges as are or may be prescribed by State law, this Code or other ordinances of the City.
[Code 1974 §160.060; CC 1984 §9-27]
A. 
The Municipal Judge shall cause to be prepared within the first ten (10) days of each month a report containing a list of all cases heard and tried before the Court during the preceding month, giving in each case, the name of the defendant, the fine imposed, if any, the amount of costs, the names of the defendants committed, and the cases where there was an application for trial de novo, respectively. The report shall be prepared under oath by the Municipal Court Clerk or the Municipal Judge. The monthly report will be filed with the City Clerk who shall thereafter forward the same to the City Council and the City Attorney for examination at its first (1st) session thereafter.
B. 
The Municipal Court shall, within the ten (10) days after the first (1st) of the month, pay to the City Treasurer the full amount of all fines and costs collected during the preceding month, if they have not previously been paid.