Jackson County District Court caseload down in '15

After experiencing a modest in­crease in court cases from 2013 to 2014, Jackson County District Court saw its caseload for 2015 dropping significantly, led by a re­duction in the number of traffic tickets processed over the year.

According to annual court fig­ures provided by District Court Clerk Colleen Reamer, the court, part of Kansas’ Second Judicial District, saw a total of 2,411 cases filed in 2015. That was nearly 250 filings less than the 2,652 cases filed in 2014 and almost 100 fewer cases filed than in 2013, when 2,522 cases were filed in the court.

Much of the overall decrease is due mainly to fewer traffic court cases processed during the year, with 733 total tickets processed in 2015 compared to 1,046 in 2014 and 969 in 2013. Of that total, the 447 regular traffic cases processed, in­cluding such infractions as speed, registration and seat belt violations, was far less than 2014’s total of 668.

Decreases in traffic cases from year to year were also seen in the number of DUI (driving under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs) and DWS (driving while license can­celled/sus­pended/re­voked) cases handled. In 2014, the court handled a total of 136 DUI cases; in 2015, the total dropped to 111. The number of DWS cases also saw a significant decline, with last year’s total of 242 cases greater than the 2015 total of 175 cases.

A handful of DWS cases were handled as part of this year’s criminal court dockets, however, and that court saw a modest increase in caseload this year. In 2013, the court han­dled 491 cases; in 2014, the total was 488; and in 2015, the total was 505.

Over the past three years in Jack­son County, the criminal court has seen its misdemeanor cases de­clining while the number of felony cases has been steadily increasing. In 2013, the county handled 317 misdemeanors and 174 felonies; in 2014, there were 276 misdemean­ors and 212 felonies; and in 2015, there were 262 misdemeanors and 243 felonies, according to court re­cords.

In the civil court division, a modest drop in overall caseload was led by a 20-case reduction in domestic court from 2014 to 2015. This year, the domestic court han­dled 134 cases, including 24 pro­tection from abuse cases and 21 protection from stalking cases; in 2014, the total was 154, including 25 protection from abuse cases and 12 protection from stalking cases.

Total filings in limited action civil court, where debt collections and rental property disputes are handled, also saw a minor decrease in totals for 2015. In 2014, a total of 411 cases were filed in limited civil court, and in 2015, the total was 408.

Only a small increase was noted in the number of small claims court filings, with 2015’s total of 23 more than the total of 20 cases filed in both 2014 and 2013. And in cases termed “miscellaneous civil,” seven cases were filed in 2015, compared with four in 2014 and five in 2013, it was reported.

Fish and game violations held nearly steady in 2015 with 12 fil­ings, compared to 2014, when 11 cases were handled, and seven cases handled in 2013.

Other court totals for 2015 and comparisons with previous years included:

• Adoptions: 12 in 2015, six in 2014 and eight in 2013.

• Marriage licenses: 69 in 2015, 76 in 2014 and 79 in 2013.

• Personal property tax: 29 in 2015, 30 in 2014 and 45 in 2013.

• Probate filings: 41 in 2015, 47 in 2014 and 31 in 2013.

• Statutory bonds: three in 2015, one in 2014 and none in 2013.

• State tax warrants: 52 in 2015, 73 in 2014 and 86 in 2013.

• Juvenile: 64 in 2015, 75 in 2014 and 77 in 2013.

• Child in need of care: 68 in 2015, 62 in 2014 and 40 in 2013.

The 2015 totals also included four mechanics’ liens, six CSO “transfer in” cases, 133 “miscella­neous criminal” cases and 15 care and treatment cases.