Cole County seeking bids for temporary courtroom

Cole County Presiding Judge Pat Joyce looks over a room that is anticipated to be a temporary courtroom for a new associate circuit judge, scheduled to start hearing cases in January. The room on the top floor of the Cole County Courthouse is currently used for judge's meetings, small court proceedings and a jury deliberation room.
Cole County Presiding Judge Pat Joyce looks over a room that is anticipated to be a temporary courtroom for a new associate circuit judge, scheduled to start hearing cases in January. The room on the top floor of the Cole County Courthouse is currently used for judge's meetings, small court proceedings and a jury deliberation room.

The Cole County Commission has asked county staff to seek bids to make a temporary courtroom available for the new associate circuit judge scheduled to start hearing cases in January at the Cole County Courthouse.

The action occurred during a meeting with commissioners and judges Wednesday about budget needs the courts are facing.

Presiding Commissioner Sam Bushman and Eastern District Commissioner Jeff Hoelscher indicated to Finance Officer Debbie Malzner and County Auditor Kristen Berhorst that they should move ahead with getting bids. Western District Commissioner Kris Scheperle left the meeting early.

Presiding Judge Pat Joyce, who will retire at the end of January, and Judge Jon Beetem, who will become presiding judge once Joyce retires, told commissioners their rough estimate to do the work is $75,000.

The room that would be used is located on the top floor of the courthouse, across from Joyce's courtroom, and has been used for meetings by judges, some small court hearings and a jury room where deliberations can be held during a trial.

In May 2018, the Missouri Legislature approved a second associate circuit judge's position in the 19th Circuit. That position was removed in 2003, when the third circuit judge's job was added.

The commission has had discussions about increasing county office space needs in recent years, looking at possibly making use of the old jail in the rear of the courthouse and purchasing a building and parking lot at 209 Adams St. in May 2019. However, commissioners have yet to decide what to do with the facilities, mainly due to the cost of making them usable.

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"This is not a long-term solution, but if we can have this in place, we can keep the flow of cases going as best as possible," Joyce said.

Hoelscher said he believes the cost would be more than what was estimated, but that it is the best solution available. He asked if the commission chambers in the courthouse annex could be used for hearings.

Beetem said they had tried setting up a courtroom in the chambers, but it wasn't possible due to the differences in computer networks between the county and the state system the courts use.

In other business, the judges, along with Circuit Clerk Dawnel Davidson, told commissioners the courts have taken numerous steps to keep the courthouse as clean as possible during the COVID-19 pandemic. But they are asking the county for more money to hire people to clean and sanitize the courtrooms. The judges said the current staff is doing the courtroom cleaning themselves.

The judges also said they are requesting to hire more people to scan and verify records.

The circuit clerk's proposed budget for 2021 is asking for an increase from $11,000 in part-time salaries and benefits in 2020 to $26,000 in 2021.

Berhorst told the judges and Davidson they could use some of the $9 million the county received in federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act funds for items purchased for COVID-19-related expenses this year, but no COVID-19-specific funds have been designated for 2021 yet.

Joyce and Beetem said they anticipate the measures that have been implemented during the pandemic will continue next year. This includes all people being required to wear masks in the courthouse, as well as spacing dockets to help with distancing requirements in courtrooms.

Beetem said he has held one misdemeanor trial in July, but he has 10 murder trials in his court that have yet to be set. Both Beetem and Joyce indicated any civil trials probably would not be held until next year.

"What used to take an hour now takes two, and what used to take one day now takes two days," Beetem said. "Picking juries has to be done at a site away from the courthouse, and that makes that process longer."