Texas Association for Court Administration

New Liaison for TACA

2010-11-08T11:17:00.002-06:00

Justice Debra H. Lehrmann is the new liaison for TACA. Please welcome her on her new duties. To see her accomplishments visit here.

Missouri judges get penalty cost before sentencing

2010-09-15T11:46:00.000-05:00

It is the first state to provide judges with defendant-specific data on what particular sentences would cost the taxpayers, and on the likelihood that the person in the dock will reoffend.

Not everyone is happy about it.

"I don't think it has any purpose in a process of balancing justice," complained Jack Banas, the St. Charles County prosecuting attorney. "Justice doesn't come down to dollars and cents. You have to look at the system as a whole picture." Read More...

Justice by the Numbers

2010-08-11T21:43:00.000-05:00

Rochester

In communities across the country, people use statistics on hospitals, schools and other public services to decide where to live or how to vote. But while millions of Americans deal with their local criminal courts as defendants and victims each year, there is no comparable way to assess a judicial system and determine how well it provides basic legal services.

This lack of data has a corrosive effect: without public awareness of a court system’s strengths and weaknesses, inefficiencies and civil liberties violations are never remedied. Read More...

Dallas County criminal court records now available to public online

2010-07-22T11:13:00.000-05:00

Dallas County is now one of the few places in Texas where you can get online access to court documents for free.

District Clerk Gary Fitzsimmons and County Clerk John Warren have worked together for months to provide the service. It's part of Fitzsimmons' electronic filing initiative in which court papers are filed electronically with no paper file...read more

2010-07-07T11:09:00.000-05:00

Dear TACA Membership,

I hope everyone had a fun and safe holiday. I am sending out this message to remind everyone of the upcoming deadline for scholarship applications. Knowing how tight budgets are right now this is a great way to get to conference. The deadline for submitting your application is August 15th.
FOUNDERS SCHOLARSHIPS
Three scholarships in honor of founding members Martin Allen, Bob Wessels and longtime TACA supporter Trisha Hall were established in 1996 to commemorate TACA’s 20th anniversary. Founders Scholarships shall be used to attend the TACA Annual Education Conference. TACA will waive the conference registration fee. The TACA Treasurer will reimburse the scholarship recipient for travel, meals and lodging associated with the conference according to the Travel Policy up to an amount not to exceed $750.

GOODWILL SCHOLARSHIPS
In 2004, TACA members began a fund-raising effort that now supports Goodwill Scholarships established to assist members with the costs of attending the TACA Annual Education Conference. These scholarships are funded from monies outside of the TACA budget and are available based on fund-raising from year to year. Goodwill Scholarships shall be used to attend the TACA Annual Education Conference. TACA will waive the conference registration fee. The TACA Treasurer will reimburse the scholarship recipient for travel, meals and lodging associated with the conference according to the Travel Policy up to an amount not to exceed $750.
Applications for the Goodwill Scholarships shall be received by the Scholarship Committee Board Liaison on or before August 15 of each year.

Thank You,

Randy Walker

TACA Blog and Facebook Page Up and Running Again

2010-06-30T14:22:00.000-05:00

With the departure of Vanessa Farmer, as our Secretariat, we have been shuffling some of the administrative duties she handled. To that end, we have now got the TACA Facebook page and the TACA Blog back up and rolling. Please take the time to visit them and make use of a great networking tool. Leave an article, reconnect with a friend and colleague, or just make someone else smile. We need all the tools we can get, let’s make use of these.

You can locate our Facebook page HERE!

You can locate our Blog HERE!

First Texas Court Management Class Graduates

2010-06-30T13:57:00.004-05:00

In June of 2009, the Texas Center for the Judiciary and the Texas Association for Court Administration (TACA) convened the first class of the Texas Court Management Program(TCMP). June 17th, 2010, during the Professional Development Program (PDP), in Austin, the first TCMP class completed their course of study and graduated. This is a monumental event for court mangment and administration in Texas. With the completetion of this first course, these Texas court professionals have raised the bar for education.

The graduation ceromonies, held at the Westin at the Domain, in Austin, were officiated by Ms. Mary Kay Bickett, Executive Director of the Texas Center for the Judiciary. Also in attendance were Carl Reynolds (Office of Court Administration), Dale Kasparek (National Center for State Courts), Walt Natemeyer, Ph.D. (TCMP Faculty) and Bob Wessels (Harris County Court Manager). The keynote speaker for the ceremonies was Chief Justice Wallace Jefferson of the Texas State Supreme Court.

This was a great accomplishment for the participants. The program was divided into five parts. The first two portions were at PDP, June 2009. The second two in conjunction with the annual education conference last year in Corpus Christi and the concluding seminar at PDP this June. Hats off to these few who have charted the course for the rest of us.

Dallas Sets Up Special Court To Expedite Property-Crime Cases

2010-04-27T14:31:00.003-05:00

Dallas County hopes it has found a new way to clear up clogged jails and hasten trials for several hundred repeat offenders believed responsible for most of the property crime in the area, reports the Dallas Morning News. In an emergency meeting, county criminal justice officials decided to create a special court that will focus on moving cases faster and probably hand out stiffer sentences, which Dallas police have been seeking. Officials hope to have the new court up and running in two or three weeks. "We're saying, 'You want to go to trial? Let's go,' " said county Commissioner John Wiley Price.

The jails' population has soared the past several months, putting pressure on county officials to find enough guards to meet state staffing requirements. It also comes at a time when the county is finishing installation of important fire safety systems in its largest jail - expected to result in a passing state inspection for the first time since 2003. One of the largest categories of inmates is those awaiting trial on state jail felonies - the lowest-level felony offense. Among them are career criminals who repeatedly burglarize homes and businesses. Dallas police say such criminals are a big factor in the city's high crime rate. Police have identified about 500 criminals who are responsible for more than half of all property crimes. Because there are more important cases awaiting trial, some offenders sit for months awaiting trial. Some of their lawyers know this and game the system. They tell clients to reject plea deals up front, knowing that it'll take months to schedule a trial. After six months, they will take a plea deal for time already served in the jail and are released to commit more crimes.

NCSC's, "Steps to Best Practices for Court Building Security."

2010-03-24T14:20:00.003-05:00

"The National Center for State Courts (NCSC), through its Court Consulting Division, has conducted security assessments of court buildings as well as personal security and safety training throughout the country. In conducting court building assessments, the NCSC assessment team has evaluated court security in terms of "best practices" – guidelines describing those security measures that should be in place with respect to a comprehensive set of topics covering court buildings and court operations. These best practices are not only based on the considerable experience of NCSC assessment team members, but are also a compilation of various guidelines from the U.S. Marshals Service, National Sheriffs’ Association, International Association of Chiefs of Police, the Transportation Safety Administration, the Department of Homeland Security, and the National Association for Court Management. The NCSC assessment team recommends that leadership in every court building strive to achieve best practices in all topic areas to provide a suitable level of security for all those who work in or visit the court building. "

TACA Featured in NACM's "Court Express"

2010-03-15T10:31:00.003-05:00

New Supreme Court Liaison Justice Eva M. Guzman

2010-03-05T09:39:00.003-06:00

The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Texas appoints the various justices to serve as liaisons between the supreme court and various judicial entities across the state. This is done in an effort to address issues and promote communication among the judiciary and the various elements and organizations serving the a...dninistration of justice in this great state of ours. Justice Eva M. Guzman has been assigned as TACA's Liaison with the Supreme Court of Texas. This appointment ensures optimum communication between our respected organization and the Supreme Court.

CACM Suggested Jury Instructions Help Deter Juror Use of Electronic Technologies

2010-02-10T09:19:00.003-06:00

At its December 2009 meeting, the Judicial Conference Committee on Court Administration and Case Management (CACM) endorsed a set of suggested jury instructions that district judges should consider using to help deter jurors from using electronic technologies to research or communicate about cases on which they serve. The suggested instructions are included as Attachment 1.

The CACM Committee developed these instructions to address the increasing incidence of juror use of such devices as cellular telephones or computers to conduct research on the Internet or communicate with others about cases. Such use has resulted in mistrials, exclusion of jurors, and imposition of fines. The suggested instructions specifically inform jurors that they are prohibited from using these technologies in the courtroom, in deliberations, or outside the courthouse to communicate about or research cases on which they currently serve.

Text Extracted from http://www.uscourts.gov/newsroom/2010/DIR10-018.pdf

Texas Forum on Self-Represented Litigants

2010-02-09T11:36:00.000-06:00

Registration is now open for the April Texas Forum on Self-Represented Litigants and the Courts in Dallas.

Link is www.TexasCourtForum.org

TACA has a Facebook Group!

2010-01-06T11:09:00.002-06:00

TACA now has a group on Facebook where approved members can post discussion questions, get feedback and interact with other TACA members!

Want to join?

You must first be a Facebook member (you can create an account by logging onto www.facebook.com).
Once you join, or if you are already a member, log into Facebook and search for TACA (or the Texas Association for Court Administration).
Click on the group once you find it.
Click on the "Join" button.
Wait for confirmation of approval.

Only approved members can see the contents of the group page, meaning if you're not a member, all you will be able to see is the logo and description.

As always, please use your discresion when posting to any public group. TACA is a professional organization and the site will be moderated to assure that any information on the group page reflects positively on the Association.

Worried about your Facebook privacy? Here's and article you might find interesting: http://www.allfacebook.com/2009/02/facebook-privacy/

Presentation Materials are Available!

2009-11-20T12:52:00.002-06:00

Did you miss the 33rd Annual Education Conference, or need a copy of something the presenters handed out at the conference? Many of the materials from the conference are now available online at http://www.mytaca.org/hist/conf/presentations2009.html.

Linda Kellum Receives TACA's Barrow Award

2009-11-19T09:57:00.002-06:00

Order in court receives attention
By BLAIR DEDRICK ORTMANN
November 19, 2009
Posted: November 18, 2009, 8:57 PM CST Last updated: November 18, 2009, 9:01 PM CST

For 14 years, Linda Kellum's smile has greeted rushed attorneys and irate citizens, court reporters and clerks alike in the office of 88th District Judge Earl Stover III.

Her calm manner belies the phone calls she makes and answers, the scheduling she juggles and the files she goes over as she performs her duties as Stover's court coordinator.

"When people call and ask if I'm Judge Stover's secretary, I correct them," she said. "I'm a coordinator."

In addition to her job, she has taken the position further, becoming a leader in the Texas Association of Court Administrators by teaching other court coordinators, organizing conferences and meetings and serving on the organization's board for several years.

Her outstanding work earned her the Justice Charles W. Barrow Award this week from the association. The award, which is not given every year, recognizes someone who has "high standards of excellence" and who makes "extraordinary contributions in promoting court administration in Texas," according to the organization's Web site.

Kellum became a court coordinator when Stover was elected 88th District Judge in 1996.

"He'd never been a judge, and I'd never been a coordinator," Kellum said, laughing.

She and Stover graduated from Silsbee High School together, she said, and worked together when she worked at his father's title business and, later, law office.

In their respective new positions, they learned together, she said, calling his dad, longtime member of the law community Earl Stover Jr., for advice in a pinch.

Fourteen years later, the two have their routine down.

Stover, whose district also includes Tyler County, spends three weeks in his Hardin County office and one week per month in Tyler County, presiding over jury trials and civil cases.

Kellum makes sure he stays busy.

"I literally do over-book," she said. "So many of our trials don't happen and if you don't have something else already lined up, that's a day wasted in the courtroom."

Hardin County's courtrooms are shared by two district judges, the county judge and the justices of the peace, and some days, Kellum said, it's like playing musical courtrooms.

"We have court wherever we fit," she said. "We have started out a trial in one courtroom and then moved to another to accommodate someone else."

Kellum and Rita Peterson, the court coordinator for 356th District Judge Britt Plunk, share the duties of making sure everyone has a place to be.

"Every case that's heard in court, we have to set it," Peterson said, adding that Kellum is outstanding at her job as well as spending much of her spare time working for the state association.

"It's time they recognized her, that's what I'm saying," she said. "You almost have to be a psychologist to deal with the citizens who come in upset, and sometimes you have to be the chamber of commerce because everybody calls when they're lost or they need the answer to a question."

Article copied from: http://www.beaumontenterprise.com/news/local/order_in_court_receives_attention.html

Criminal Court Cost Charts

2009-10-27T10:25:00.001-05:00

The latest news from OCA's website: The District Clerk’s Felony Court Cost Chart, the County Clerk’s Misdemeanor Court Cost Chart – Original Jurisdiction, and the County Clerk’s Misdemeanor Court Cost Chart – Appeals from Lower Courts have been updated to include new and amended criminal court costs established by the 81st Legislature. These new and amended criminal court costs will go into effect on January 1, 2010. [09/18/09]

Judges to Judges: What is the Impact of underage drinking on the courts' caseloads?

2009-09-22T15:31:00.005-05:00

REMINDER - UPCOMING PROGRAM ANNOUNCEMENT

This program is the fourth in a series of audio-teleconference presentations produced by the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation (PIRE) and the American Probation and Parole Association (APPA) in cooperation with the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) with a focus on the relationship of the judicial and probation communities and the issues related to underage alcohol abuse.

TITLE: Judges to Judges: What is the Impact of underage drinking on the courts’ caseloads

COURSE DESCRIPTION:
The impact of underage drinking is not well discussed or even acknowledged because the related problems that occupy a significant amount of the Court’s time do not carry a label “underage drinking”. Yet the illegal activity of drinking by the underage youth creates many associations for additional illegal activities. Judges and court staffs around the country are looking for information and seeking best practices to provide youthful offenders with the best possible outcomes.

The U.S. Surgeon General’s “Call to Action to Prevent and Reduce Underage Drinking” called for increasing the knowledge of judges and others in the justice system about the nature and scope of underage drinking. The education needs include how to identify the underage drinking problem in your case load when alcohol is not part of the charged offense. How do the judges identify the alcohol risks for a child on the Children in Need of Service docket and experiencing stressful events such as divorce or abuse may be at increased risk for alcohol involvement? Our program panel of judges will share how they identify the impacts of underage alcohol problems for the young people in their courts (adult and juvenile) and discuss what information they would like to have in the future to address these problems.

LOCATION: Online Audio Teleconference

DATE: September 30, 2009 3:00-4:15 Eastern Time

PRESENTERS:
Judge Lucinda Masterton
Circuit 22 Family Court
Kentucky Court of JusticeLexington, KY

Judge Michael McPhail
Forrest County Youth Court
Hattiesburg, MS

Judge Thomas Bamberger,
Associate Justice
State of New Hampshire District Court System
Nashua, New Hampshire

NO REGISTRATION FEE: Register on line at: http://www.udetc.org/audioconf_judicialregistration.asp

Course Objectives, Outline and CLE Certificate Provided Upon Request

INQUIRIES:
Aidan J. Moore
Senior Program Manager
Judicial-Probation Outreach Project
Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation
amoore@pire.org
603-369-1766

TACA Appoints New Board Member: Denise Spalding

2009-08-12T16:10:00.003-05:00

I am sending you this message to inform you that Dana Cotherman of the TACA Board has received and accepted the position as City Clerk for the city of Ulyses, Kansas. This is a great opportunity for Dana and her family and, while we will definitely miss her, we wish her great success in her new position.

Needless to say Dana cannot retain her Regular Membership in TACA and as such cannot remain on the Board of Directors. Therefore, in accordance with the TACA Bylaws (Art. IV, Sect. 7), the Board has appointed Denise Spalding to serve out Dana’s unexpired term. Denise serves with the 158th District Court in Denton County and has been a TACA Member since 1990. We believe Denise is a great addition to the Board and will serve the Membership with great zeal and enthusiasm.

Randy Walker, TACA Chair

Board Candidates Have Been Nominated!

2009-07-15T10:46:00.004-05:00

This year, the TACA Board of Directors will have two open positions for the 2010 - 2011 term. Both Dana Cotherman and Sylvia Buitron’s positions on the Board have expired. Sylvia Buitron has submitted her Declaration of Candidacy to run for another term. Besides this candidate, nominations will also be accepted from the floor at the Annual Conference with written consent from the nominee’s supervising judge.

All regular members in good standing are eligible to vote for the Board of Directors. The TACA By-laws provide that members unable to attend the Annual Conference may vote by proxy (absentee) ballot.

The Nominations Committee recommends the following candidate:

Sylvia Buitron, Court Administrator for the 341st District Court in Laredo

Sylvia Buitron has been a member of TACA since June of 1987, when she started working for the 341st District Court with the Honorable Elma T. Salinas Ender. For the past 22 years, she has been working cooperatively with the other staff members to attempt to carry out the overall philosophy of the court. She handles all personnel matters including time sheets and payroll, prepares the annual budget, sets the judge’s calendar, orders office supplies, maintains the court’s files and acts as a liaison between the Court and other county entities in Webb County.

Sylvia has been attending the TACA Annual Conference since 1987 and has been a member of the Education Committee for approximately 15 years. She is always willing to help out at the conference wherever needed and still does so to this day as a board member. She has been serving as the Board Liaison to the Publication Committee over the past two years and has experienced firsthand what the Association really stands for. She realizes the length that the board, together as a unit, goes to in order to ensure, and protect the members’ best interests.

Sylvia has attended all three phases of the Professional Development Program. She was a member of SCAN (Stop Child Abuse and Neglect) from 1993 - 1998 and a United Way Board Member from 1997 - 2003.

Sylvia would like to continue to serve our organization and Judge Ender has given her consent and support to run for another term.

SCHOLARSHIPS!

2009-06-26T09:28:00.004-05:00

SCHOLARSHIPS are available for the 2009 conference or other training events! Hurry and apply now...the deadline is August 15th!

Membership Recruitment

2009-06-26T09:28:00.003-05:00

Jerome Coleman is currently in the lead for our membership referral contest! He's in line to receive $100! Want to be the winner? Click here for more info...

Membership Special

2009-06-26T09:28:00.001-05:00

Are you getting ready to renew your TACA Membership? If so, you can take advantage of the special that TACA is offering. Click here for more information...

Membership Fees will Increase

2009-06-26T09:27:00.001-05:00

Remember, TACA Regular Membership fees will increase on July 1, 2009. Be sure to apply or renew your membership today!

Conference Registration is OPEN!

2009-06-26T09:26:00.003-05:00

Registration is OPEN for the 33rd Annual TACA Education Conference, "It Takes a Village".

Scholarship Application / Declaration for Candidacy

2009-06-26T09:26:00.002-05:00

There are 2 things it is never too early to do-- complete a Scholarship Application and/or a Declaration for Candidacy!

Exhibitor Packets Available

2009-06-26T09:25:00.001-05:00

Want to exhibit at the November 10 - 13, 2009 TACA Conference? Download your exhibitor packet now!

April Journal Deadline Quickly Approaching!

2009-02-13T09:36:00.000-06:00

Anyone interesting in submitting an article for the April TACA Journal must do so by the March 6, 2009 deadline. For more information, contact the TACA Journal Chair, Kristy Smith, at KLSmith@TarrantCounty.com.