Tag: judges

New jail: Monroe County council, commissioners hit rough patch, de-appropriation of money mulled

Monroe County’s council, the fiscal body for county government, is looking to send a signal that it’s not pleased with the recent approach the board of county commissioners has taken to the project to build a new county jail.

Monroe County councilors from left: Jennifer Crossley, Trent Deckard, and Kate Wiltz (June 11, 2024)

On Tuesday, councilors took the chance at the start of their regular meeting to express their dissatisfaction that county commissioners have now announced that it’s the county council, as opposed to themselves, who should work with the sheriff to determine the bed count for a planned new jail facility.

Councilors are also not happy because they say that a jail design consultant hired by county commissioners, with money appropriated by the county council, recently declined to provide the council an update.

So on July 9, there could be an item on the council’s agenda that would de-appropriate some of the money that came from a $10.5 million bond, the issuance of which was approved at the Oct. 11, 2022 meeting of the county council. Continue reading “New jail: Monroe County council, commissioners hit rough patch, de-appropriation of money mulled” →

Board recommends pay increase for Election Day poll workers, goes now to Monroe County commissioners

At a special meeting on Monday, Monroe County’s election board voted to recommend a change to county code that would increase the not-to-exceed amounts for Election Day poll workers.

It is the Monroe County commissioners, who would need to enact the change to the county code that sets Election Day poll worker pay.

But the election board will still have a role to play, even after county code is changed to specify a higher range, assuming that commissioners do increase the amounts. It’s the election board that specifies the exact amount, within the range spelled out in county code.

Commissioners are expected to consider the item at their work session on Wednesday. Commissioner work sessions start after the regular Wednesday morning meetings conclude, typically with a short break. The regular meetings start at 10 a.m. and typically wrap up in 90 minutes or less.

The current per diem pay for different jobs on Election Day breaks down like this: $165 for inspectors; $135 for judges; $135 for clerks; and $115 for sheriffs.

At its special meeting on Monday, the election board voted to recommend that the not-to-exceed amounts be changed so that the following pay schedule could be followed: $200 for inspectors; $175 for judges; $150 for clerks; and $120 for sheriffs. (A poll worker sheriff is not a sworn law enforcement officer.) Continue reading “Board recommends pay increase for Election Day poll workers, goes now to Monroe County commissioners” →

Jail committee tries to turn page on infighting: “Talking more is always a good antidote to talking less or talking crosswise.”

Community justice response committee (Feb. 6, 2023)
From left: Monroe County circuit court judges Kara Krothe and Catherine Stafford and deputy prosecutor April Wilson.
County councilors Jennifer Crossley and Peter Iversen. Community justice response committee (Feb. 6, 2023).

This Monday marked the first meeting of Monroe County’s community justice response committee (CJRC) after the membership was revised by county commissioners—to include all three commissioners, reduce the number of judges from four to two, but not add any representatives from Bloomington city government.

The previous couple of meetings had been contentious.

And much of the friction centered on the makeup of the group, which is supposed to be responding to the work of two consultants, released to the county government more than 18 months ago.

The meetings were contentious enough to prompt a rebuke of the committee from various quarters. Friction between the judicial and the executive branch surfaced about how input is treated from different people at the table, and how information is shared.

That friction surfaced at a previous meeting when county commissioner Lee Jones told circuit court judge Catherine Stafford, “I’m sorry, Catherine, would you please stop interrupting me.”

This Monday, it was Stafford who was asked by committee co-chair county commissioner Penny Githens to get the meeting started with some remarks.

The way Githens cued up Stafford’s speaking turn made it plain she wanted to start a new chapter: “I was chatting with my friend judge Stafford recently, and I was going to ask her if she would start the meeting off with just a few brief sentences.”

Stafford responded by alluding to some of the rocky terrain the committee had traversed: “I think that talking more is always a good antidote to talking less, or talking crosswise.” Continue reading “Jail committee tries to turn page on infighting: “Talking more is always a good antidote to talking less or talking crosswise.”” →

Monroe County auditor at swearing-in ceremony: “If you love people, please mask up.”

Monroe County officials who won election in November took their oaths of office at noon on Friday, New Year’s Day.

Screenshot of Jan. 1, 2021 swearing in ceremony of Monroe County elected officials. The green highlighted square is auditor Catherine Smith, who encouraged people to mask up. Image links to FB video of the ceremony.

The 50-minute-long ceremony was hosted by the Monroe County Democratic Party. Election winners were all Democrats.

The continuing COVID-19 pandemic, which added another death to Monroe County’s count on Friday, was reflected in the venue for the ceremony—a Zoom video conference, live streamed on Facebook.

Those who took the oath of office were: judges Kara Krothe, Valeri Haughton, Geoff Bradley; auditor Catherine Smith; treasurer Jessica McClellan; coroner Joani Shields; surveyor Trohn Enright-Randolph; county commissioners Julie Thomas and Penny Githens; and county councilors Trent Deckard, Geoff McKim and Cheryl Munson. Continue reading “Monroe County auditor at swearing-in ceremony: “If you love people, please mask up.”” →