Page 212 - N. Richland Hills General Budget

Municipal Court

Who we are

The mission of the North Richland Hills Municipal Court is to serve its citizens and guests in a courteous, efficient and
professional manner. The court and it’s officers are dedicated to the principles of administering a fair and efficient
system committed to respect and equality while ensuring public trust and confidence in the judicial system.

What do we do

1 Provide excellent customer service 5 Timely case processing for customer efficiency
2 Provide safety and security in the Court 6 Provide a quad city Teen Court program
3 Seek and evaluate alternative programs 7 Maintain compliance of active warrants
4 Provide a consistent level of case resolution 8 Work with Judge and Pros for efficient justice

Council Priorities

Quality Community Development & Revitalization x Sense of Community
Efficient & Effective Transportation System Targeted Economic Development
x Safety and Security Local & Regional Leadership
x Financial Stability x Efficient & Effective Delivery of City Services
x Positive City Image

FY 2019-20 Top Accomplishments

 The Court implemented additional electronic processes and access allowing defendants and or their attorney's to
track timely case status updates, file motions and or representation letters, accept certificates of completed
requirements and written requests for undue hardship considerations via Online Record Search, Email and or Fax.

 The Court implemented multiple workflows allowing us to electronically process the majority of our dockets which
are now paperless and/or paper light. We restructured our docketing system to "set dockets" instead of "walk in
dockets" with the expectation of expediting case flow and payment processing. This revision was key in reducing
the time patrons spent in court intake lines and docket settings.

 The Court proactively streamlined an assessment docket for all cases where the defendant either displayed "at
risk" indicators and/or pertinent information was discovered by case management overview. This process allowed
the Case Manager to prepare recommendations for the Judge to consider possible assessment referrals and or
alternative programs.

 The Court has certified four clerks through the Texas Municipal Courts Education Center. To qualify for Level II,
clerks must complete 40 hours education and pass a four‐hour exam. Areas covered include legal research, ethics,
fairness/diversity, processing cases, legal codes/statutes, records/case flow, financial management, forfeitures,
domestic violence and computer literacy.

 The Court was selected as one of four courts to participate in testing Tyler Technologies text messaging notification
program. This feature allowed us to send reminders of multiple court dates, payment due dates, pre warrants and
Teen Court notices for available projects. As a result of this free service we saw a 34% increase in resolution.

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