What does a Justice Court Judge Do?

Many people have been in justice court, but few understand the breadth of the justice court's jurisdiction.  For starters, justice court judges are elected from districts within a county, that they don't have to live in.  I don't live in District 1, where I am running as a candidate.  Instead, I live in district 3, where I am not a candidate.  I'll explain my reasons for that in a future post.  However, the physical jurisdiction of all justice court judges extend to the county line.

Justice Court has non-exclusive jurisdiction over all civil matters up to $3,500.00 that are not otherwise in the exclusive jurisdiction of another court.  Justice Court also conducts initial appearances and bond hearings in felony cases, tries misdemeanors outside the city limits, and hears citations from DFW, the Highway Patrol, MDOT tickets, and Marine Resources citations.  Check out Jackson County's informational page on Justice Court.  Justice Court judges also issue warrants.

To my mind, the most important things that Justice Court Judges do are initial hearings, warrants, and evictions.  Why?  Because these three things have the most impact on everyday people in Justice Court.  In Mississippi, every person in custody has a right to see a judge within 48 hours of his arrest.  Sometimes, this doesn't happen. I hear horror stories from other counties about people who have been in jail for up to a week without seeing a judge.  Thankfully, that is not a problem in Forrest County, where our judges are dedicated public servants.

The signing of warrants is an important and often overlooked duty of justice court judges.  Warrants are an important protection of both those accused of crimes and of the police officers investigating crimes and the victims of crime.  Warrants are a certificate from a judicial officer stating that he has reviewed the allegations and based upon sworn testimony of an officer determined that there is probable cause for an arrest, or a search.  This safeguard protects the judicial system, the accused, and the victim from potential abuses by allowing a judge to examine an officer's reasons for arresting or searching.  So often we see in TV shows that officers are waiting around for warrants to be signed; judges should be available to review warrants around the clock.  Our justice court judges have a history of providing this service for our community, and I intend to continue it.