[1]
State Law Reference: As to certain violations concerning an accused with special needs, § 479.040, RSMo.
[Ord. No. 561, 9-2-2025]
A. 
From and after March 2, 2026, all violations of the municipal ordinances of the City of Kimberling City, Missouri, shall be heard and determined by Associate Circuit Judges of the 39th Judicial Circuit Court, unless the Presiding Judge of the 39th Judicial Circuit gives notice of consent to change the date to the Mayor of the City of Kimberling City.
B. 
It is hereby requested by the City of Kimberling City Board of Aldermen, upon approval of the Presiding Judge of the 39th Judicial Circuit and the Associate Circuit Judges(s) hearing and determining violations of the ordinances of the City. The Violation Bureau shall be operated in accordance with the rules of the Circuit and Supreme Courts. The City requests that provision be made by the Circuit Court rule for the Traffic Violations Bureau to be operated by the staff available to the Associate Circuit Judge(s). Court costs for all cases handled and processed through the Violation Bureau shall be distributed and assessed at the maximum amount set forth in Chapter 479, RSMo., as now in existence or as hereinafter amended.
C. 
The Associate Circuit Judge(s) may hear and determine municipal ordinance violations of the City in a courtroom provided by Stone County.
D. 
The Mayor and other appropriate City officials are hereby authorized to take and all actions necessary, desirable, convenient or prudent in order to carry out the intent of the legislation.
There is hereby established in the City of Kimberling City a Municipal Court to be known as the "Kimberling City Municipal Court, a Division of the 39th Judicial Circuit Court of the State of Missouri." In the event a Police Court existed prior to the establishment of a Municipal Court, this Court is a continuation of the Police Court of the City as previously established and is termed herein "The Municipal Court."
Violations of municipal ordinances shall be heard and determined only before divisions of the Circuit Court as hereinafter provided in this Chapter. The term "heard and determined," for purposes of this Chapter, shall mean any process under which the Court in question retains the final authority to make factual determinations pertaining to allegations of a municipal ordinance violation.
The Judge of the City's Municipal Court shall be known as a Municipal Judge of the 39th Judicial Circuit Court and shall be selected by appointment to the position by the Mayor with approval of a majority of the members of the Board of Aldermen for a term as specified herein.
The Municipal Judge shall hold his/her office for a period of at least two (2) years. If for any reason a Municipal Judge vacates his/her office, his/her successor shall complete that term of office, even if the same be for less than two (2) years.
A. 
The Municipal Judge shall vacate his/her office under the following conditions:
1. 
Upon removal from office by the State Commission on the Retirement, Removal and Discipline of Judges as provided in Missouri Supreme Court Rule 12;
2. 
Upon attaining his/her 75th birthday; or
3. 
If he/she should lose his/her license to practice law within the State of Missouri.
[R.O. 2012 § 125.040; Ord. No. 127 § 4, 1-2-1990]
In case of absence, sickness or disability in anywise of the Municipal Judge, or in case of the vacancy of such office, the Mayor shall perform the duties of such office until the disability is removed or the vacancy is filled. The term "Municipal Judge" used herein shall also refer to the Mayor when the Mayor is acting in such capacity.
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 of Missouri.
2. 
He/she need not reside within the City.
3. 
He/she must be a resident of the State of Missouri.
4. 
He/she must be between the ages of twenty-one (21) and seventy-five (75) years.
5. 
He/she may serve as a Municipal Judge for any other municipality.
6. 
He/she may not hold any other office within the City Government.
B. 
The Municipal Judge shall be considered holding a part-time position and as such may accept other employment.
C. 
No Municipal Judge shall serve as a Municipal Judge in more than five (5) municipalities at one (1) time.
The Municipal Court of the City shall be subject to the rules of the Circuit Court of which it is a part and to the rules of the State Supreme Court. The Municipal Court shall be subject to the general administrative authority of the Presiding Judge of the Circuit Court, and the Judge and Court personnel of said Court shall obey his/her directives.
The Municipal Judge shall cause the Court Clerk to prepare, within the first ten (10) days of every month, a report indicating the following: A list of all cases heard or tried before the Judge 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 defendants committed, and the cases in which there was an application for trial de novo, respectively. The Court Clerk or the Judge shall verify such lists and statements by affidavit and shall file the same with the City Clerk who shall lay the same before the Board of Aldermen of the City for examination at its first session thereafter. The Municipal Court shall, within the ten (10) days after the first of the month, pay to the Municipal Treasurer the full amount of all fines collected during the preceding month, if not previously paid to the Municipal Treasurer.
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. Such docket and records shall be records of the Circuit Court of Stone County. The Municipal Judge shall deliver said docket, records and all books and papers pertaining to his/her office to his/her successor in office or to the Presiding Judge of the Circuit.
A. 
The Municipal Judge shall be and is hereby authorized to:
1. 
Establish a Violations Bureau as provided for in the Missouri Rules of Practice and Procedure in Municipal and Traffic Courts and Section 479.050, RSMo.
2. 
Administer oaths and enforce due obedience to all orders, rules and judgments made by him/her and may fine and imprison for contempt committed before him/her while holding Court in the same manner and to the same extent as a Circuit Judge.
3. 
Stay execution of any fine or sentence, suspend any fine or sentence, and make such other orders as the Municipal Judge deems necessary 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, and 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 Missouri Rules of Practice and Procedure in Municipal and Traffic Courts.
B. 
The Municipal Judge shall have such other powers, duties and privileges as are or may be prescribed by the laws of this State, this Code or other ordinances of this City.
[Ord. No. 501, 2-2-2021]
A. 
Definitions. As used in this Section the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
ADMINISTRATIVE WARRANT
A written order of the Municipal Judge permitting the entry of City officials on or into private property to enforce the City's housing, zoning, health, and safety regulations when government entry on or into such private property is otherwise authorized by Missouri law.
CODE ENFORCEMENT OFFICIAL
The person or persons appointed by the Mayor to serve in such capacity.
MUNICIPAL COURT
The Municipal Court of the City of Kimberling City, or the Associate Circuit Court of Stone County if the City has elected to have its cases heard there.
POLICE, POLICE OFFICER, or POLICE CHIEF
If the City has contracted with the Stone County Sheriff to provide law enforcement in the City, the Sheriff of Stone County or any of his or her deputies.
B. 
Warrants, When Issued.
1. 
A warrant may issue only in conformance with this Section and only for the enforcement of the City's housing, zoning, health, and safety regulations, specifically:
a. 
To abate such physical conditions on private property constituting a public nuisance or otherwise in violation of a specified regulation as provided herein;
b. 
To inspect private property to determine or prove the existence of physical conditions in violation of such a specified regulation; and
c. 
To seize, photograph, copy, or record evidence of the violation of such a specified regulation.
2. 
The Municipal Judge, having original and exclusive jurisdiction to determine violations against the ordinances of the municipality, may issue an administrative warrant when:
a. 
The property to be entered is located within the City; and
b. 
The owner or occupant of the property to be entered:
(1) 
Has refused to allow same after an official request by the City; or
(2) 
Is not available, after reasonable investigation and effort, to consent to such entry or inspection; and
c. 
The City establishes probable cause to determine that a public nuisance or other violation of a specified regulation as provided herein may exist; and
3. 
Any such warrant shall be directed to the Chief of Police or any other Police Officer of the City and shall be executed by the Chief of Police or said Police Officer, in conjunction with the appropriate Code Enforcement Officer or another appropriate official, within the City limits and not elsewhere.
C. 
Who May Apply For Warrant — Contents Of Application.
1. 
Any Code Enforcement Officer, Police Officer, or attorney of the City may make an application to the Municipal Judge for the issuance of an administrative warrant.
2. 
The application shall:
a. 
Be in writing;
b. 
State the time and date of the making of the application;
c. 
Identify the property to be entered, inspected, or seized in sufficient detail and particularity that the officer executing the warrant can readily ascertain it;
d. 
State that the owner or occupant of the property:
(1) 
Has been requested by the City to allow such action and has refused to allow such action; or
(2) 
Is not available, after reasonable investigation and effort, to consent to such entry or inspection; and
e. 
State facts sufficient to show probable cause for the issuance of a warrant to enter the private property, including the specification of the housing, zoning, health, or safety regulation sought to be enforced;
f. 
Be verified by the oath or affirmation of the applicant; and
g. 
Be signed by the applicant and filed in the Municipal Court.
3. 
The application may be supplemented by a written affidavit verified by oath or affirmation. Such affidavit shall be considered in determining whether there is probable cause for the issuance of a warrant and in filling out any deficiencies in the description of the property or place to be entered. Oral testimony shall not be considered. The application may be submitted by facsimile or other electronic means.
D. 
Hearing And Procedure — Contents Of Warrant — Execution, And Return.
1. 
Hearing And Procedure.
a. 
The Municipal Judge shall determine whether probable cause exists to enter the private property for the purposes noted herein and whether all other requirements of this Section have been met.
b. 
In determining probable cause the Municipal Judge shall determine whether the action to be taken by the City is reasonable in light of the facts stated. The Municipal Judge shall consider the goals of the ordinance or Code Section sought to be enforced and such other factors as may be appropriate, including, but not limited to, the physical condition of the specified property, the age and nature of the property, the condition of the area in which the property is located, the known or suspected violation of any relevant City ordinance or Code Section, the passage of time since the property's last inspection, and the law, Statute or ordinance authorizing government entry onto private property. The standard for issuing a warrant need not be limited to actual knowledge of an existing violation of a City ordinance or Code Section.
c. 
If it appears from the application and any supporting affidavit that there is probable cause to enter the private property for the enforcement of the City's housing, zoning, health, and safety regulations and that all other requirements of this Section have been met, a warrant shall immediately be issued.
d. 
The warrant shall issue in the form of an original and two (2) copies, and the application, any supporting affidavit, and one (1) copy of the warrant as issued shall be retained in the records of the Municipal Court.
2. 
Contents Of A Warrant. The warrant shall:
a. 
Be in writing and in the name of the City;
b. 
Be directed to any Police Officer in the City;
c. 
State the time and date the warrant was issued;
d. 
Identify the property to be entered in sufficient detail and particularity that the officer executing the warrant can readily ascertain it;
e. 
Command that the described property be entered for one (1) or more specified enforcement purposes as provided herein, identify the regulation sought to be enforced, and direct that any evidence of any suspected property violations be seized, recorded, abated, or photographed, and a description of such property seized or evidence taken, or a general description of abatement activities, be returned, within ten (10) days after filing of the application, to the Clerk of the Municipal Court, to be dealt with according to law;
f. 
Be signed by the Judge, with his/her title of office indicated.
3. 
Execution And Return.
a. 
A warrant issued under this Section shall be executed only by a City Police Officer, provided, however, that one (1) or more designated City Officials may accompany the officer, and the warrant shall be executed in the following manner:
b. 
The warrant may be issued by facsimile or other electronic means.
c. 
The warrant shall be executed by conducting the private property entry as commanded and shall be executed as soon as practicable and in a reasonable manner.
d. 
The officer shall give the owner or occupant of the property entered a copy of the warrant.
e. 
Receipt of the property taken.
(1) 
If any property is seized incident to the search, the officer shall give the person from whose possession it was taken, if the person is present, an itemized receipt for the property taken. If no such person is present, the officer shall leave the receipt at the site of the search in a conspicuous place.
(2) 
A copy of the itemized receipt of any property taken shall be delivered to an attorney for the City within two (2) working days of the execution of the warrant.
(3) 
Trash, junk, litter, garbage, discarded auto parts, lawn waste, vegetative material which is taken as part of the abatement of a nuisance may be discarded, sold, or recycled as determined by the Code Enforcement Official, and any proceeds therefrom shall be paid to the owner of the property, less the City's costs of abatement. The disposition of any other property seized pursuant to a warrant under this Section shall be in accordance with an applicable City ordinance or Code Section, but in the absence of same, then with Section 542.301, RSMo.
4. 
The officer may summon as many persons as he/she deems necessary to assist him/her in executing the warrant.
5. 
An officer executing an invalid warrant, the invalidity of which is not apparent on its face, may use such force as he/she would be justified in using if the warrant were valid.
6. 
A warrant shall expire if it is not executed and the required return made within ten (10) days after the date of the making of the application.
7. 
Return Requirements.
a. 
After execution of the warrant, the warrant, with a return thereon signed by the officer executing the warrant, shall be delivered to the Municipal Court.
b. 
The return shall show the date and manner of execution and the name of the possessor and of the owner, when not the same person, if known, of the property entered.
c. 
The return shall be accompanied by any photographs, copies or recordings made and by any property seized, along with a copy of the itemized receipt of such property required by this Section; provided, however, that seized property may be disposed of as provided herein, and in such a case a description of the property seized shall accompany the return.
d. 
The Court Clerk, upon request, shall deliver a copy of the return to the possessor and the owner, when not the same person, of the property entered or seized.
E. 
Warrant Invalid, When. A warrant shall be deemed invalid:
1. 
If it was not issued by the Municipal Judge;
2. 
If it was issued without a written application having been filed and verified;
3. 
If it was issued without sufficient probable cause in light of the goals of the ordinance to be enforced and such other factors as provided in Subsection (D)(1)(b) hereof;
4. 
If it was not issued with respect to property in the City;
5. 
If it does not describe the property or places to be entered, inspected or seized with sufficient certainty;
6. 
If it is not signed by the Judge who issued it;
7. 
If it was not executed and the required return made within ten (10) days after the date of the making of the application; or
8. 
If it was not issued in compliance with this Section.
Should the Municipal Judge determine that there shall be a Violations Bureau, the City shall provide all expenses incident to the operation of the same.
All warrants issued by a Municipal Judge shall be directed to the Chief of Police or any other Police Officer of the municipality or to the Sheriff of the County. The warrants shall be executed by the Chief of Police, Police Officer or Sheriff at any place within the limits of the County and not elsewhere, unless the warrants are endorsed in the manner provided for warrants in criminal cases and, when so endorsed, shall be served in other Counties as provided for in warrants in criminal cases.
The Chief of Police or other Police Officer of the City shall, without a warrant, make arrest of any person who commits an offense in his/her presence, but such officer shall, before the trial, file a written complaint with the Judge hearing violations of municipal ordinances.
Any person charged with a violation of a municipal ordinance of this City shall be entitled to a trial by jury as in prosecutions for misdemeanors before an Associate Circuit Court Judge. Whenever a defendant accused of a violation of a municipal ordinance has a right to and demands such trial by jury, the Municipal Court shall certify the case to the Presiding Judge of the Circuit Court for reassignment.
It shall be the duty of an attorney designated by the City to prosecute the violations of the City's ordinances before the Municipal Judge or before any Circuit Judge hearing violations of the City's ordinances. The salary or fees of the attorney and his/her necessary expenses incurred in such prosecutions shall be paid by the City. The compensation of such attorney shall not be contingent upon the number of cases tried, the number of guilty verdicts reached, or the amount of fines imposed or collected.
It shall be the duty of the Municipal Judge to summon all persons whose testimony may be deemed essential as witnesses at the trial and to enforce their attendance by attachment, if necessary. The fees of witnesses shall be the same as those fixed for witnesses in trials before Associate Circuit Court Judges and shall be taxed as other costs in the case. When a trial shall be continued by a Municipal Judge, it shall not be necessary to summon any witnesses who may be present at the continuance, but the Municipal Judge shall orally notify such witnesses as either party may require to attend before him/her on the day set for trial to testify in the case and enter the names of such witnesses on his/her docket, which oral notice shall be valid as a summons.
A. 
If, in the progress of any trial before the Municipal Judge, it shall appear to the Judge that the accused ought to be put upon trial for an offense against the criminal laws of the State and not cognizable before him/her as Municipal Judge, he/she shall immediately stop all further proceedings before him/her as Municipal Judge and cause the complaint to be made before some Associate Circuit Court Judge of the County.
B. 
For purposes of this Section, any offense involving the operation of a motor vehicle in an intoxicated condition as defined in Section 577.001, RSMo., shall not be cognizable in Municipal Court, if the defendant has been convicted, found guilty, or pled guilty to two (2) or more previous intoxication-related traffic offenses as defined in Section 577.023, RSMo., or has had two (2) or more previous alcohol-related enforcement contacts as defined in Section 302.525, RSMo.
If, in the opinion of the Municipal Judge, the City has no suitable and safe place of confinement, the Municipal Judge may commit the defendant to the County Jail, and it shall be the duty of the Sheriff, if space for the prisoner is available in the County Jail, upon receipt of a warrant of commitment from the Judge to receive and safely keep such prisoner until discharged by due process of law. The municipality shall pay the board of such prisoner at the same rate as may now or hereafter be allowed by law to such Sheriff for the keeping of other prisoners in his/her custody. The same shall be taxed as cost.
A. 
Any Judge hearing violations of municipal ordinances may, when in his/her judgment it may seem advisable, grant a parole or probation to any person who shall plead guilty or who shall be convicted after a trial before such Judge. When a person is placed on probation, he/she shall be given a certificate explicitly stating the conditions on which he/she is being released.
B. 
In addition to such other authority as exists to order conditions of probation, the Court may order conditions which the Court believes will serve to compensate the victim of the crime, any dependent of the victim, or society in general. Such conditions may include, but need not be limited to:
1. 
Restitution to the victim or any dependent of the victim in an amount to be determined by the Judge; and
2. 
The performance of a designated amount of free work for a public or charitable purpose or purposes as determined by the Judge.
C. 
A person may refuse probation conditioned on the performance of free work. If he/she does so, the Court shall decide the extent or duration of sentence or other disposition to be imposed and render judgment accordingly. Any County, City, person, organization or agency or employee of a County, City, organization or agency charged with the supervision of such free work or who benefits from its performance shall be immune from any suit by the person placed on parole or probation or any person deriving a cause of action from him/her if such cause of action arises from such supervision of performance, except for intentional torts or gross negligence. The services performed by the probationer or parolee shall not be deemed employment within the meaning of the provisions of Chapter 288, RSMo.
D. 
The Court may modify or enlarge the conditions of probation at any time prior to the expiration or termination of the probation term.
In any case tried before the Municipal Judge, except where there has been a plea of guilty or where the case has been tried with a jury, the defendant shall have a right of trial de novo before a Circuit Court Judge or upon assignment before an Associate Circuit Court Judge. An application for a trial de novo shall be filed within ten (10) days after judgment and shall be filed in such form and perfected in such manner as provided by Supreme Court rule.
In any case tried with a jury before an Associate Circuit Judge, a record of the proceedings shall be made, and appeals may be had upon that record to the appropriate Appellate Court.
In the case of a breach of any recognizance entered into before a Municipal Judge or an Associate Circuit Court Judge hearing a municipal ordinance violation case, the same shall be deemed forfeited and the Judge shall cause the same to be prosecuted against the principal and surety, or either of them, in the name of the municipality as plaintiff. Such action shall be prosecuted before a Circuit Court Judge or Associate Circuit Court Judge, and in the event of cases caused to be prosecuted by a Municipal Judge, such shall be on the transcript of the proceedings before the Municipal Judge. All monies recovered in such actions shall be paid over to Municipal Treasury to the General Revenue Fund of the municipality.
A Municipal Judge shall be disqualified to hear any case in which he/she is in any way interested or, if before the trial is commenced, the defendant or the prosecutor files an affidavit that the defendant or the municipality, as the case may be, cannot have a fair and impartial trial by reason of the interest or prejudice of the Judge. Neither the defendant nor the municipality shall be entitled to file more than one (1) affidavit or disqualification in the same case.
If the Municipal Judge or Provisional Judge be absent, sick or disqualified from acting pursuant to the general administrative authority of the Presiding Judge of the Circuit Court over the Municipal Divisions within the circuit contained in Section 478.240, RSMo., a special Municipal Judge may be designated in accordance with the provisions of Section 479.230, RSMo., until such absence or disqualification shall cease.
A. 
A person commits the offense of failure to appear in Municipal Court if:
1. 
He/she has been issued a summons for a violation of any ordinance of the City of Kimberling City and fails to appear before the Judge of the Municipal Court at the time and on the date on which he/she was summoned, or at the time or on the date to which the case was continued;
2. 
He/she has been released upon recognition of bond and fails to appear before the Judge of the Municipal Court at the time and on the date on which he/she was summoned, or at the time or on the date to which the case was continued;
3. 
He/she has been placed on Court supervised probation and fails to appear before the Judge of the Municipal Court at the time specified by said Judge as a condition of the probation.
B. 
Nothing in this Section shall prevent the exercise of the Municipal Court of its power to punish for contempt.
[Ord. No. 532, 6-6-2023]
A. 
It is unlawful for any person or entity to knowingly: obstruct; resist; oppose; provide false information to; lie to; fail to obey a lawful command of; or mislead any Law Enforcement Officer, judicial employee, Municipal Judge, City Prosecutor, Prosecutor's staff member, or other public official of the City, who is in the performance of their official duties.
B. 
Any person or entity violating this Section shall be punished by a fine not exceeding five hundred dollars ($500.00) or by imprisonment of up to ninety (90) days, or by both a fine and imprisonment; or by the maximum allowed by State law.