County rescinds referendum on District Court

Issue won’t be on ballot in November to allow more time to gather data, try to make case to the public

ALBION – The Orleans County Legislature voted unanimously today to rescind a resolution from July 19 that would have put a District Court up for public referendum on the November ballot.

The Legislature is putting the issue on “pause” to allow a committee more time to gather and present facts to the public.

The Legislature passed a resolution on July 19 to have voters decide whether the county would shift to a District Court to handle many of the criminal cases currently in town courts. The District Court would be full-time Monday through Friday.

The proposal faced a lot of pushback from town justices and other community members during a July 20 public meeting in the legislative chambers of the Legislature. They wanted more specifics on how the court would operate, what it would cost and why the town courts aren’t sufficient.

The county faced an Aug. 7 deadline from the Board of Elections to remove the referendum from the ballot. The Legislature called a special meeting at 3:30 p.m. to rescind the resolution.

“The committee needs more time,” said Kathy Bogan, the county attorney.

The committee exploring the District Court includes District Attorney Joe Cardone, Sheriff Chris Bourke, Public Defender Joanne Best, Albion Town Justice Joe Fuller (representing the Orleans County Magistrates Association), Assistant DA Susan Howard, County Chief Administrative Officer Jack Welch, former Gaines Town Justice and Assistant DA Bruce Schmidt and county legislators John Fitzak and Skip Draper.

Fuller spoke during the July 20 public meeting and made it clear he is adamantly opposed to a District Court. He said there are too many unknowns with the court, and believes the town justices are fulfilling their duties in court facilities that are all paid for.

Cardone and Public Defender Joanne Best said they see a push from the state to have District Courts with judges who are trained as attorneys. Cardone and Best want to see the county move to a District Court before a state mandate.

They said a District Court would offer more consistency with justice in Orleans County, and would operate on a full-time daily schedule to allow cases to move more quickly.

Jack Welch, the county chief administrative officer, said the committee will work to provide “clear and concise answers” for the public.

The committee needs financial data from the town courts on the expenses and revenues at the town level. Cardone said few of the courts have provided that information. The committee may pursue those facts through the Freedom of Information Act.

Legislature Chairwoman Lynne Johnson said the Legislature’s vote to rescind the resolution to allow more time to make the case to the public was in response to the concerns raised at the public meeting on July 20.

“What’s important is we’re listening to the people,” she said.