LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The state judicial branch’s fiscal situation has resulted in the Lake County Superior Court making significant changes to its calendar, including moving all criminal matters to Lakeport, with traffic and small claims going to Clearlake.
Presiding Lake County Superior Court Judge David Herrick said the court calendar needed to be restructured in order to cope with continuing budget cuts.
The changes will go into effect Aug. 6, Herrick said.
Herrick told Lake County News that the local court has been planning changes for some time.
“The May revise has just made things more definite and gave us a specific number to work with,” he said.
Last month, the Judicial Council of California held an emergency session in the wake of Gov. Jerry Brown’s new budget proposal, which called for a $544 million reduction to the judicial branch in fiscal year 2012-13, as Lake County News has reported.
This most recent reduction follows four consecutive years of cuts totaling $653 million, according to the Judicial Council.
For context, the Lake County Superior Court budget for the current fiscal year totals just over $3.6 million, excluding grants and reimbursements, according to court officials.
“We have felt the cuts mightily here,” said Herrick. “It’s been very difficult to absorb.”
The new cuts on the horizon are going to be even worse, Herrick said.
The state judicial branch has dealt with the cuts that have occurred to date with a series of one-time fixes, but Herrick said there is an ongoing debate about how effective those fixes have been, and what the ultimate impact has been on the courts and the justice system.
So far, the Lake County Superior Court hasn’t been given a precise number for the budget reduction it can expect in the coming fiscal year, said Herrick.
However, he added, “It’s going to be a pretty huge number,” and to prepare the court is looking at different scenarios to address that bottom line number.
As part of the changes going into effect in August, Judge Stephen Hedstrom – who presides over Department 4 at the Clearlake courthouse at 7000 A South Center Drive – will move, along with the criminal calendar he oversees, to the Lake County Courthouse in Lakeport, said Herrick. The courts take up the fourth floor of that building.
“That’s the main logistical component to the change,” Herrick said.
By moving Hedstrom and his caseload to Lakeport, Herrick said the court anticipates certain operational efficiencies will result, including no longer having to transfer inmates or criminal files to the south county court.
“The downside, of course, will be the terrible overcrowding we experience on the fourth floor will be enhanced,” Herrick said.
Herrick said Hedstrom will hear cases in of one of the four courtrooms in Lakeport, and may take over Herrick’s chambers at year’s end, after Herrick retires. Once Herrick has retired, Hedstrom will be the most senior judge in terms of years on the bench.
None of the other Lake County Superior Court judges – including Herrick in Department 1, Judge Richard Martin in Department 2 or Judge Andrew Blum in Department 3 – will be affected by the court calendar changes, Herrick said.
While Hedstrom moves to Lakeport and brings the remainder of criminal cases with him, all small claims, unlawful detainers and traffic matters – for the entire county – will be transferred to the Clearlake division, Herrick explained.
The new Clearlake court calendar will include child support cases on Mondays and traffic and unlawful detainers on Tuesdays. On the remaining three business days of the week, Herrick said the Clearlake court facility will be used on an as-needed basis.
Herrick said there are no layoffs planned among court employees. However, he said eight vacant positions won’t be backfilled.
The Judicial Council’s report last month on the state budget situation said the cuts it is facing in the coming fiscal year would force the courts to pull $300 million from trial court reserves and delay some court construction projects to realize another $240 million.
Lakeport’s new courthouse project – which the State Public Works Board approved on Friday – is among the projects being delayed.
Construction originally was to have begun in early 2014, with completion anticipated in fall 2015. However, Court Executive Officer Mary Smith said the Lakeport Courthouse project is being pushed back a year.
The project – currently estimated to cost nearly $56 million – also must reduce hard construction costs by at least 3 percent, based on the latest state requirements for the project.
Smith told Lake County News in a recent interview that the court already is working on making those reductions.
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060812 Lake County Superior Court Calendar Changes