[R.O. 1988 § 2-128; Ord. No. 2131 § 1, 1-8-1979]
There is hereby established pursuant to the provisions of Section 479.020, RSMo., the office of Municipal Judge of Rolla, Missouri.
[R.O. 1988 § 2-129; Ord. No. 2131 § 2, 1-8-1979]
There is hereby established a Municipal Court, to be known as the "Rolla Municipal Court, a division of the Twenty-Fifth Judicial Circuit of the State of Missouri." This court is a continuation of the Municipal Court of the City as previously established and is termed herein "the Municipal Court."
[R.O. 1988 § 2-131; Ord. No. 2131 § 4, 1-8-1979]
The term of office for the Municipal Judge of Rolla, Missouri, shall be two (2) years.
[R.O. 1988 § 2-132; Ord. No. 2131 § 5, 1-8-1979]
The Municipal Judge of the City of Rolla, Missouri, shall be elected by the qualified voters of Rolla at the municipal election on the first Tuesday in April of 1980 and every two (2) years thereafter, and shall hold office for the term herein provided and until their successor has been duly elected and qualified. The procedures for filing declarations of candidacy, and other election procedures that are applicable to the office of Mayor shall apply to the office of Municipal Judge, except that there is no limitation on the number of terms that a person may serve as Municipal Judge.
[R.O. 1988 § 2-133; Ord. No. 2131 § 6, 1-8-1979; Ord. No. 2966 § 1, 12-6-1993]
The Municipal Judge shall vacate their office under the following circumstances:
[R.O. 1988 § 2-134; Ord. No. 2137 § 7, 2-12-1979; Ord. No. 2966 § 2, 12-6-1993; Ord. No. 3134 § 1, 7-1-1996; Ord. No. 3363 § 2, 4-3-2000]
The Municipal Judge shall possess the following qualifications before they shall take office:
(a)
They must be a licensed attorney qualified to practice law within the State of Missouri.
(b)
They must reside within Phelps County.
(c)
They must be a resident of the State of Missouri.
(d)
They must be between the ages of twenty-one (21) and seventy-five (75) years.
(e)
They may serve as Municipal Judge for other municipalities.
(f)
They may not hold any other office within the government of the City of Rolla.
(g)
The Municipal Judge shall be considered holding a part-time position and, as such, may accept other employment within the requirements of the Code of Judicial Conduct, Missouri Supreme Court Rule 2.
(h)
No Municipal Judge shall serve as a Municipal Judge in more than five (5) municipalities at one (1) time a court that serves more than one (1) municipality shall be treated as a single municipality for the purposes of this Subsection.
[R.O. 1988 § 2-135; Ord. No. 1954 § 1, 1-12-1976; Ord. No. 2471 § 1, 9-16-1985; Ord. No. 2719 § 1, 1-8-1990; Ord. No. 2988 § 1, 3-7-1994; Ord. No. 4387 § 1, 12-4-2017]
The Municipal Judge shall receive the annual salary of eighteen thousand dollars ($18,000.00), which salary shall be paid bi-weekly.
[R.O. 1988 § 2-137; Ord. No. 2131 § 8, 1-8-1979]
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.
[R.O. 1988 § 2-138; Ord. No. 2131 § 9, 1-8-1979; Ord. No. 2590 § 1, 3-7-1988]
The Municipal Judge shall report, within the first ten (10) days of every month, the following:
(a)
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 cost, the names of defendants committed and in the cases where there was an application of trial de novo, respectively. The same shall be prepared under oath by the Municipal Court clerk or the Municipal Judge. This report shall be filed with the City Clerk, who shall thereafter make available the same to the City Council of the City of Rolla for examination. The Municipal Court shall, within ten (10) days after the first of the month, pay to the Finance Director the full amount of all fines collected during the preceding months, if they have not previously been paid.
[R.O. 1988 § 2-139; Ord. No. 2131 § 10, 1-8-1979]
The Municipal Judge shall be a conservator of the peace. They shall keep a docket in which they shall enter every case commenced before them and the proceedings therein and they shall keep such other records as may be required. Such docket and records shall be records of the Circuit Court of Phelps County. The Municipal Judge shall deliver the docket and records of the Municipal Court, and all books and papers pertaining to their office, to their successor in office or to the presiding judge of the circuit.
[R.O. 1988 § 2-140; Ord. No. 2131 § 11, 1-8-1979]
The Municipal Judge shall be and is hereby authorized to:
(a)
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.
(b)
Administer oaths and enforce due obedience to all orders, rules and judgments made by them, and may fine and imprison for contempt committed before them while holding court, in the same manner and to the same extent as a Circuit Judge.
(c)
Commute the term of any sentence, 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.
(d)
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. Any and all rules made or adopted hereunder may be annulled or amended by an ordinance limited to such purpose; provided, that such ordinance does not violate, or conflict with, the provisions of the Missouri Rules of Practice and Procedure in Municipal and Traffic Courts, or State Statutes.
(e)
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.
[R.O. 1988 § 2-141; Ord. No. 2131 § 12, 1-8-1979]
The Municipal Judge may establish a violations bureau and if the same is established, the City shall provide all funding for the operation of such bureau.
[R.O. 1988 § 2-142; Ord. No. 2131 § 13, 1-8-1979]
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 warrant shall be executed by the Chief of Police, Police Officer, or sheriff 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.
[R.O. 1988 § 2-143; Ord. No. 2131 § 14, 1-8-1979]
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 ordinance violations before an Associate Circuit Judge. Whenever a defendant accused of a violation of a municipal ordinance demands trial by jury, the Municipal Court shall certify the case to the presiding judge of the Circuit Court for reassignment.
[R.O. 1988 § 2-144; Ord. No. 2131 § 15, 1-8-1979]
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 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 them on the day set for trial to testify in the case, and enter the names of such witnesses on their docket, which oral notice shall be valid as a summons.
(a)
If, in the progress of any trial before a 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 them as Municipal Judge, they shall immediately stop all further proceedings before them as Municipal Judge and cause the complaint to be made before some Associate Circuit Judge within 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 577.001, RSMo., or has had two (2) or more previous alcohol-related enforcement contacts as defined in Section 302.525, RSMo.
[R.O. 1988 § 2-146; Ord. No. 2131 § 17, 1-8-1979]
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 to such sheriff for the keeping of such prisoner in their custody.
(a)
Any Judge hearing violations of municipal ordinances may, when in their 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, they shall be given a certificate explicitly stating the conditions on which they are 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 offense, any dependent of the victim, or society in general. Such conditions may include, but need not be limited to:
(c)
A person may refuse probation conditioned on the performance of free work. If they do 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 them 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.
[R.O. 1988 § 2-148; Ord. No. 2153 § 1, 5-7-1979]
In any case tried before a Municipal Judge who is not licensed to practice law in this State, the defendant shall have a right to trial de novo, even from a plea of guilty, before a Circuit Judge or an Associate Circuit Judge. In any case tried before a Municipal Judge who is licensed to practice law in this State, or before an Associate Circuit Judge, except where there has been a plea of guilty or the case has been tried with a jury, the defendant shall have the right of trial de novo before a Circuit Judge or upon assignment before an Associate Circuit Judge. An application for 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 shall be made and appeals may be had upon that record to the appropriate appellate court.
[R.O. 1988 § 2-150; Ord. No. 2131 § 21, 1-8-1979]
In the case of a breach of any recognizance enter into before a Municipal Judge or Associate Circuit 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 Judge or Associate Circuit 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 the municipal treasury to the general revenue fund of the municipality.
[R.O. 1988 § 2-151; Ord. No. 2131 § 22, 1-8-1979]
A Municipal Judge shall be disqualified to hear any case in which they are in anywise 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.
[R.O. 1988 § 2-153; Ord. No. 2131 § 24, 1-8-1979]
Should the Municipal Judge be disqualified to act in any case and a temporary judge is designated as provided by this Division, such person shall receive the sum equivalent to the hourly rate paid to the elected Municipal Judge, payable by the City. Persons designated to fill a vacancy in the office of Municipal Judge shall receive the same salary as the duly elected Municipal Judge.
[R.O. 1988 § 2-154; Ord. No. 4005 § 1, 5-2-2011]
(a)
In addition to any fine that may be imposed by the Municipal Judge there shall be assessed as costs in all cases the following:
(1)
Costs of Court in the amount of twelve dollars ($12.00).
(2)
Police Officer Training Fee. A fee of three dollars ($3.00) is hereby established and assessed as additional Court costs in each Court proceeding, except that no such fee shall be collected when the proceedings against the defendant have been dismissed.
a.
Two dollars ($2.00) of each such Court cost shall be transmitted monthly to the Finance Director of the City and used to pay for Police Officer training as provided by Sections 590.100 to 590.180, RSMo. The City shall not retain for training purposes more than one thousand five hundred dollars ($1,500.00) of such funds for each certified Law Enforcement Officer or candidate for certification employed by the City. Any excess funds shall be transmitted quarterly to the City's General Fund.
(3)
Crime Victims' Compensation Fund. An additional sum of seven dollars and fifty cents ($7.50) shall be assessed and added to the basic costs in Subsection (a)(1) of this Section, provided that no such cost shall be collected in any proceeding when the proceeding or the defendant has been dismissed by the Court. All sums collected pursuant to this Subsection shall be paid at least monthly as follows:
(4)
There may also be assessed a cost of up to four dollars ($4.00) per case for each criminal case, including violations of any municipal ordinance, for the purpose of providing operating expenses for shelters for battered persons as set out in Section 488.607, RSMo.
(5)
There shall be assessed a surcharge of seven dollars ($7.00) for the Statewide Court Automation Fund.
(6)
(Reserved)
(7)
Any other reasonable cost as may be otherwise provided by ordinance and permitted under the laws of the State of Missouri, including, but not limited to, costs of confinement, including any necessary transportation related thereto, medical costs incurred by the City while a defendant is in the City's custody, and costs related to the arrest and testing of any person for any intoxication-related traffic offense as set out in this Section.
(8)
Reimbursement Of Certain Costs Of Arrest.
a.
Upon a plea or a finding of guilty of violating the provisions of Section 27-132 or 27-133 of this Code or any ordinance of the City of Rolla involving alcohol- or drug-related traffic offenses, the Court may, in addition to imposition of any penalties provided by law, order the convicted person to reimburse the Police Department for the costs associated with such arrest.
b.
Such costs hereby authorized shall include the reasonable cost of making the arrest, including the cost of any chemical test made as authorized or required by law or ordinance to determine the alcohol or drug content of the person's blood, and the costs of processing, charging, booking and holding such person in custody.
c.
The Chief of Police may establish a schedule of such costs hereby authorized and shall submit the same to the Municipal Judge. However, the Court may order the costs reduced if it determines that the costs are excessive.
(9)
Judicial Education Fund.
a.
A City by ordinance may provide for fees in an amount per case to be set pursuant to Sections 488.010 to 488.020, RSMo., for each municipal ordinance violation case filed before a Municipal Judge, and in the event a defendant pleads guilty or is found guilty, the Judge may assess costs against the defendant except in those cases where the defendant is found by the Judge to be indigent and unable to pay the costs. The fees authorized in this Subsection are in addition to service charges, witness fees and jail costs that may otherwise be authorized to be assessed, but are in lieu of other Court costs. The fees provided by this Subsection shall be collected by the Municipal Division Clerk in municipalities electing or required to have violations of municipal ordinances tried before a Municipal Judge pursuant to Section 479.020, RSMo., or to employ judicial personnel pursuant to Section 479.060, RSMo., and disbursed as provided in Subsection (1) of Section 479.080, RSMo. Any other court costs required in connection with such cases shall be collected and disbursed as provided in Sections 488.010 to 488.020, RSMo.; provided, that each Municipal Court may establish a Judicial Education Fund and an Appointed Counsel Fund, each in separate accounts under the control of the Municipal Court to retain one dollar ($1.00) of the fees collected on each case. The fees collected shall be allocated between the two (2) funds as determined by the Court. The Judicial Education Fund shall be used only to pay for:
b.
The Appointed Counsel Fund shall be used only to pay the reasonable fees approved by the Court for the appointment of an attorney to represent any defendant found by the Judge to be indigent and unable to pay for legal representation, and where the Supreme Court rules or the law prescribes such appointment. Provided further, that no Municipal Court shall retain more than one thousand five hundred dollars ($1,500.00) in the Judicial Education Fund for each Judge, Administrator or Clerk of the Municipal Court and no more than five thousand dollars ($5,000.00) in the Appointed Counsel Fund. Any excess funds shall be transmitted quarterly to the General Revenue Fund of the County or Municipal Treasury.
[R.O. 1988 § 2-155]
The costs of any action may be assessed against the prosecuting witness and judgment be rendered against them that they pay the same and stand committed until paid in any case where it appears to the satisfaction of the Municipal Judge that the prosecution was commenced without probable cause and from malicious motives.
[R.O. 1988 § 2-156; Ord. No. 2131 § 27, 1-8-1979]
When a fine is assessed for violating an ordinance, it should be within the discretion of the judge assessing the fine to provide for the payment of a fine on an installment basis under such terms and conditions as they may deem appropriate.
[R.O. 1988 § 2-157; Ord. No. 2131 § 28, 1-8-1979]
There shall be a Municipal Division Clerk and such additional clerical staff as is necessary to aid the Municipal Division Clerk. The Municipal Division Clerk, under the supervision of the Municipal Judge and with the aid of the other clerical personnel, shall perform the following duties:
(a)
The duties provided for clerks for municipal divisions by Subsection 1 of Section 479.060 and Subsections 3 and 4 of Section 483.241, RSMo.;
(b)
Collect fines and court costs which are assessed by the Municipal Judge or in the violations bureau;
(c)
Remit to the proper official fines and court costs which are collected within the time and in the manner provided by Statute, court rule or ordinance.