District Court begging for cash

Adrienne Packer

Friday, April 9, 1999 | 10:40 a.m.

Five years ago, interpreters in Clark County's District Court division were called upon 9,700 times to guide Spanish-speaking residents through the justice system.

In 1998, the staff of three interpreters answered 26,400 requests and as a result, piled up an average of 15 hours a week in overtime pay.

And that's just one short-staffed office under the roof of District Court, whose administrators are pleading with Clark County's finance czars for more funding as the 1999-2000 budget is finalized.

A recent presentation showed the county has an operating budget of $631 million. After money is allocated to each department and priority projects and programs are funded, about $2.8 million is left to support supplemental budgets.

Every county department submitted supplemental budget requests to receive money for additional resources -- particularly for personnel -- that were not funded the previous fiscal year.

"We're all experiencing tremendous growth and we're not immune to that," said Court Administrator Chuck Short, who has requested money for 26 new positions. "We've done a real good job with roads, convention centers and airports, but the focus needs to turn in the next 10 years to people services."

In the discovery and arbitration division not too far from the court interpreters' office, attorney Tom Beggar works with two paralegals. Last year, Beggar processed 15,000 civil cases for discovery -- the fact-finding process for hearings involving the county. Of those cases, 4,000 to 5,000 went into arbitration, another process that Beggar must oversee.

"With one attorney handling that workload with two paralegals, there are concerns something could be missed if they're not already being missed," Short said.

The county's budget process started about three months ago when department heads submitted their requests. The budget is broken down into three parts: the supplemental budget, capital projects budget and base budget, which was what each department spent during the last fiscal year and will likely need again.

The tentative budget will be presented to commissioners later this month and the final budget will be approved in May. Dividing up county funds has never been easy, but it only becomes more difficult as the valley grows.

"Every department requested additional staff to keep up with growth and the population," said Finance Director George Stevens. "It's hard to say whether one department is in more need than the other."

While District Court officials recognize that other county departments also need money, they said a lack of staffing is beginning to severely affect customer service.

"We got so big with the number of cases and the people moving in, it's taxing," said Chief District Judge Lee Gates. "We need people in discovery and we need more law clerks.

"With some of these positions we're in dire need of assistance, otherwise it will slow down the way we process cases. Right now, we're doing a pretty good job getting them resolved."

District Court officials would like to receive enough money to hire one more employee in the jury services division. Many times, Short said, residents responding to jury duty notices are put on hold for several minutes when they call.

"We had hoped for two but reduced it to one person; it's a frontline service," Short said. "It bothers us tremendously that people have to wait five minutes on the phone line. We've tried to stay open later and open earlier."

There is also concern about at least one of the county's most vital programs.

The county's Court-Appointed Special Advocates Program (CASA) does not comply with a 1974 federal law requiring children mired in court proceedings involving domestic violence, abuse or neglect to be assigned an attorney or advocate.

In January, Clark County Commissioner Myrna Williams said she would strongly encourage fellow board members to fund two positions -- an assistant manager and a legal secretary -- for CASA.

The District Court received a $50,000 federal grant for its CASA program, but the money is contingent upon the county filling two more positions.

"The CASA program is at risk. I'm really hopeful commissioners will see their way to funding this one," Short said. "There is a compelling need; kids go without representation and their legal rights aren't appropriately addressed because there is nobody to speak for them. That one tugs at your heart."

County administrators are continuing to meet with department heads over staffing needs. The information will be passed on to commissioners, who will determine how to split up the $2.8 million.

Assistant County Manager Mike Alastuey, however, is confident District Court officials will see additional funding.

"The courts being a part of the justice system are always carefully considered in terms of evaluating needs," Alastuey said. "We understand their top priorities; they have clearly articulated those needs."