Justice Courts in Utah

Several years ago, many municipalities and counties created justice courts in order to retain 100% of the fines levied by them, rather than a third of the money if the case was handled by the district court. This sounded good to these cities and counties for a way to generate badly needed revenue. But there is a very big problem. The justice courts do not fall under the oversight of the state supreme court and its judiciary oversight commission. There is no oversight at all as to what the judges do in these court rooms.

These judges are employed by the city or county and paid through the revenue they generate through the court, such things as traffic fines, minor drug offenses, and most misdemeanor violation of municipal or county ordinances, such as business license issues, dog license issues, parking tickets, jaywalking tickets, etc.

Here is the problem, theses courts are not required to have a transcript of the proceedings or any form of recording of it as well. So the interaction between the defendant and the judge is not recorded for future review or use on appeal. So very few appeals are granted because there is no record of the proceeding for the appeal court to review. The judge is the prosecutor, judge, jury and person handing down the sentence. They have the power to put a person in jail and to issue warrants for arrest.


According to a Deseret News article back in February, a women in West Jordan had been cited for not having a business license for her small home business. When she appeared in court in West Jordan, the court clerk gave her an order of abeyance that only had two options, guilty or no contest (which is the same as guilty), no place to indicate NOT guilty and a fine of $200. So she would not sign it as see wanted to show that she had complied with what the city told her was acceptable for an unlicensed operation in her home. The judge then put her in the County Jail, which is already over crowded, for 30 days for contempt of court violation. She only had to do 13 days before the jail needed the bunk for a more serious prisoner. Her cell mate was in for assault, she for growing plants without a license.

Eventually she got her appeal heard in a Murray court and the judge through out the case. But she did have to pay $40 to that court.

This is not American justice. This is simple criminal frisking of a citizen to raise money for the city or county and the court. There is no oversight of these judges, no court record of the proceedings and the judge can do anything he or she wants to you, up to 30 days in county jail. You have very little rights. This is not how we should handle jurist prudence. That is not what we established in the state and US Constitution regarding our civil and criminal rights.

Either these justice courts fall under the same system as all the other courts with oversight and proper rules of law regarding the proceedings and evidence, or they should be eliminated. Your freedom, even for 30 days, is more important than generation revenue for the city or county.