Municipal Court works to get caught up on cases

When the COVID-19 pandemic began affecting Alabama last spring, it also pushed cases back for the Vestavia Hills Municipal Court, Court Director Umang Patel said.

Municipal courts were shut down for three months, pushing back cases for several months and doubling the city’s docket, Patel said.

In “normal” times, the court would handle about 150 cases per docket each day, but now, Patel said, dockets include anywhere from 500 to 600 cases, with an average of 40 to 50% appearance rate, though that’s improving as vaccinations make their way across the state and people become more comfortable heading out of the house.

Cases that come up have been pushed six to nine months out, due to the high number of cases, Patel said.

During the initial outbreak of COVID-19 last spring, Patel said the court didn’t suspend driver’s licenses or give failure to appear warrants for those who were a no-show in court because of the virus.

The court is requiring masks, distancing chairs, taking temperatures and giving out hand sanitizer, Patel said. For those who are waiting on COVID-19 test results, Patel said their case is continued so they do not have to appear in person. Guests are now using kiosks or a website to check in, and they can be notified when their case is being heard, Patel said. The system basically creates a queue.

“We kind of had to change the whole system,” Patel said. “There’s obviously no manual for something like this. … It’s been an adjustment for sure.”

More cases are now being handled by email and phone, and more dates are being offered for defensive driving courses to help as well, Patel said.

Patel said his staff has communicated more in the past year than ever before and has worked to help create a new system that will help people. In addition, there are three courts going on simultaneously, helping sift through the backlog of cases: misdemeanor, traffic and ordinance violations. Magistrates help determine which residents need to see the judge or if there’s another way to handle their case, Patel said.

For those coming to court, they can email court@vhal.org if they have any questions, and they can also check in through the court’s mobile app. Patel just asks that residents be patient with the online queue, as the court is doing the best it can to sift through its docket.

Patel also is working to upgrade the court’s software system, which is currently all paper based, meaning there has to be a paper file with each case, and court employees must manually move them. New software would allow the court to be paperless.

Patel said he is working to acquire the software and wants to interview multiple software companies to see which one would best fit the court’s needs.

The plan is to use court tech funds to pay for the upgrade, which Patel estimates will cost a little more than $100,000, plus yearly maintenance fees.