BRICE, Ohio (AP) — A central Ohio village that lost a major
part of its revenue stream when the state abolished mayor’s courts for
some small villages has a new system for collecting money from traffic
fines.
The village of Brice in Franklin County has installed a
"civil-violations system," in which fines are meant to be paid directly
to the village, The Columbus Dispatch (http://bit.ly/1jozB84 ) reports. The newspaper
reports that police in the village of 114
residents have written more than 1,000 traffic citations, some for as
much as $1,500 under the new system.
Citations have been issued for violations including speeding, suspended licenses and illegal window
tints.
But
drivers and others are questioning the system adopted a few months
after state lawmakers stripped Brice and six other Ohio villages mostly
supported by traffic tickets of their mayor’s courts. The courts were
banned in villages with fewer than 201 residents.
Mayor’s courts
have received criticism over the years, with some believing they
encourage creation of speed-traps to raise money.
Franklin County Municipal Court Judge Michael T. Brandt said he had never heard of a system like Brice’s
new one.
"I
just can’t fathom anybody trying this," Brandt said. "It sounds like a
way to circumvent the law to keep the money influx into the community."
The
village’s prosecutor, Tammy Hiland, said Brice officials know that
their system is being questioned, but that they developed it "with good
intentions." She said the officials believed they were on solid ground
legally.
"They didn’t feel like they were doing anything wrong," said Hiland, who began working for the
village in September.
Village
offices were closed Saturday, and messages seeking comment from the
mayor and other officials were not immediately returned.
The
village enacted its new system in May after the law abolishing the
mayor’s courts took effect in March, and police began handing out the
new tickets in July, the newspaper reported.
Hiland said the new
system was based on the ticketing structure that Bowling Green police
use for infractions such as littering or disorderly conduct. The new
ordinance cited an Ohio Supreme Court case involving speed cameras and
civil penalties in Akron as justification for Brice leveling its own
fines for traffic violations.
The ordinance also notes the
addition of a $500 penalty not paid in 60 days, and it’s not clear how
much money the village has collected under the new system, according to
the Dispatch.
Drivers can challenge citations at administrative hearings held once a month.
But
Consuela Floyd was so incensed over her July 31 citation charging $75
for a 4 percent window tint that she asked to have it transferred to
Franklin County.
"I knew that I wasn’t going to pay the ticket" said Floyd, 41, of Blacklick.
She said the ticket was dismissed, but she had to pay $90 in court costs.
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Information from: The Columbus Dispatch, http://www.dispatch.com
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