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Village of Lowville Proposes Local Law to Dissolve
Village Justice Court; Public Hearing Scheduled for August 18
Published: August 09, 2021
at 07:45 p.m.
By: Nick Altmire
Lowville, NY- The Village of
Lowville Board of Trustees has drafted a local law that proposes the
dissolution of the Village of Lowville Justice Court, effective March 31,
2022. A public hearing on the matter is scheduled for the board’s August
meeting, to be held on Wednesday, August 18, 2021
at 4 p.m. at the Village offices on Bostwick St.
The topic has
been discussed during recent meetings of the Board of Trustees, with board
members setting the public hearing for the proposed law during their July
meeting.
Mayor Joe Beagle
tells us that the proposal comes at a time when the court has become more
challenging for the village to run with the recent criminal justice reforms
in New York State.
If the proposed
law is adopted it would be subject to a permissive referendum, meaning
village residents would have 30 days from the adoption date to collect
enough signatures to take the matter to a public vote.
If dissolved, the
Village of Lowville Justice Court would be absorbed by the Town of Lowville
Justice Court.
Unlike towns,
villages are not required to have a Justice Court, according to New York
State Unified Court System statutes. If a village decides not to continue
its Justice Court, the village may dissolve it by resolution or local law,
subject to permissive referendum. Pursuant to Village Law, however, the
dissolution would take effect only upon the expiration of the justices'
terms of office.
Currently the
village of Lowville has one elected Village Justice, Jennifer Scordo, with her current four-year term set to expire
on March 31, 2022.
If a village
dissolves its Justice Court, the active cases of the Justice Court would be
transferred to the town or towns in which the village is situated,
according to the New York State Uniform Court System’s Justice Court manual.
Its closed case files would remain village property unless the village
makes another arrangement with the town(s). Village clerks may only destroy
closed village justice court records when authorized to do so according to
Record Retention Rules promulgated by the Unified Court System's Office of
Records Management, according to the manual.
Where a town
receives the cases of an abolished Village Justice Court, those cases come
into the Town Justice Court like any other case, according to the Justice
court manual. The town cannot treat them differently and cannot
"charge" the village or the litigants for costs incurred.
Anyone wishing to
be heard on the matter is encouraged to attend the public hearing for the
proposed law on Wednesday, August 18, 2021 at 4
p.m.
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