TJCTC's Blog
Please share this with the constable clerks that you work with. This program includes courses specifically designed by clerks and is sure to be a great few days in Galveston!
Click below to open the flier in a browser.
Register: https://www.tjctc.org/civil-process/education-events.html
We have a lot to share this week – webinars, modules, caselaw, and more. Make sure to scroll all the way down!
TJCTC Webinar – Mental Health Resources for Judges
TLAP helps judges with issues related to substance use or mental health disorders and maintains a list of volunteer judges who are interested in providing support to peers in crisis. This class will feature a discussion with TLAP and the resources available for judges dealing with issues such as vicarious trauma.
Thursday, May 2, 2024 from 2:00 – 3:00 p.m.
Registration link: https://txstate.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_PcBlRuUQQlatRObdzcHpiw#/registration
Justice Court Section Webinar – Civil Trial and Pretrial Rules and Practice in Justice Courts
Presenter, Rebecca Glisan, TJCTC Director of Curriculum & Staff Attorney
This course will cover some of the specific rules and common issues that arise in justice courts related to jury and bench trials as well as pre-trial motions and hearings. Topics will include continuances, mediation and agreed orders, summary disposition, discovery, evidence, development of the facts of the case, preparing the jury, and more.
Friday, May 17, 2024 from noon – 1:00 pm
Registration link: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0uf-qprTwiEt0SfYLrJi12yZMulvcVHzA9%20#/registration
Financial Literacy Month
In addition to stress awareness month, April is also Financial Literacy Month. We put together a list of resources for you to share with your communities on financial literacy. Click on the link below the flier to open in a browser.
Fair Housing Month and Fair Housing Act Module
April is also Fair Housing Month. In recognition of this month, the National Center for State Courts has released a self-paced module all about the Fair Housing Act.
Hybrid Hearings Initiative Resource
The National Center for State Courts recently released this resource after the last few years of researching the best practices for hybrid hearings.
CDL Case Resources
Whether you handle a large caseload of CDL cases or just one every-so-often, the National Judicial College has created a website full of resources just for you. Bookmark https://cdlresources.org/ to prepare for your next CDL case.
Upcoming Court Security Training in Williamson County
Williamson County Justice of the Peace Precinct 3 and the Office of Court Administration are partnering to host an in-person court security training at the end of May. Details are below, and a flier is attached to this email if you are interested.
May 22, 2024 from 9:00 am – 4:30 pm
100 Wilco Way, Georgetown, TX 78626
Fill out this form to RSVP, space is limited.
For questions or more information, please email cherie.vasquez@wilco.org.
Lexipol Webinars
Constables and deputies, are you looking for some free, online training? Lexipol produces some interesting webinars on hot topics that they provide for free on their website. One of the recent issues discussed was use of force. Take a look for yourself – https://www.lexipol.com/resources/webinars/.
Caselaw Updates
Issue: Can officers open an abandoned cell phone at a crime scene to view non-electronic identifying information [example: international mobile equipment identification (IMEI) number] to use to obtain a search warrant for the phone’s digital data?
Holding: Yes. “The police did not have to obtain a warrant to obtain the phone’s IMEI number from its interior SIM tray before securing a warrant to view the phone’s digital contents. The IMEI number allowed the police to describe the phone with the particularity required to obtain the warrant, and to hold otherwise would impede the ability of police officers (and good Samaritans) to attempt to determine a cell phone’s ownership by checking its nondigital identifiers … Further, by fleeing, Martinez abandoned any reasonable expectation of privacy in the IMEI number when he dropped the phone at the crime scene—a place he had no right to be.”
Why did we share this with you? This decision is helpful to both law enforcement officers and magistrates who issue search warrants. It is comprehensive, and if you handle either requesting search warrants or signing search warrants, it is worth a read.
Issue: Did the trial court abuse its discretion by denying the defendant’s request for bail reduction and failing to consider the public safety report?
Holding: No. “After considering all the statutory and judicial factors relevant to setting bail, we conclude that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in denying [the defendant’s] application seeking a reduced amount of bail.” Regarding the public safety report, the Court noted that the defendant did not raise the issue until his appeal, and the Court may not consider issues that were not raised in his application and addressed by the trial court. The Court went on to say that “even if [the defendant] had presented the public safety report issue and preserved it for our review, [the defendant] does not identify how the trial court’s alleged failure to consider the report caused him harm. As such, he has not met his burden to establish his entitlement to the extraordinary relief of habeas corpus.”
Why did we share this with you? This is another case shortly after the Court of Criminal Appeals issued its opinion in Ex Parte Gayosso. The issue of public safety reports in bail cases are a hot topic that we will continue to see cases on.
As always, we look forward to when we see you next!
Thea & the TJCTC Team
We hope your April is going well. It has been nice seeing all of the beautiful wildflowers blooming as we drive to programs! In this edition of updates we have an updated sample confidentiality policy for you to use with your offices, Stress Awareness Month resources, a recent Attorney General Opinion, and more. Don’t forget to scroll all the way down!
Confidentiality Policy Requirement Goes Into Effect May 1 – TJCTC Sample Policy
In February, as required by the Texas Legislature during the 2023 session, the Texas Supreme Court modified Rule of Judicial Administration 7.1 to require all courts, including justice courts, to implement a confidentiality policy. The policy must be provided to existing employees at least biannually, and all new employees must be trained on the policy before performing any substantive work.
Courts must implement this policy no later than May 1, 2024. Download TJCTC’s sample policy.
Read the Rules of Judicial Administration.
Attorney General Opinion KP-0426
Re: Whether a constable may simultaneously serve as a municipal court judge (RQ-0517-KP)
Summary
Constitution and conflicting-loyalties incompatibility preclude a municipal judge from simultaneous serving as a constable.
Stress Awareness Month
We know that your jobs are stressful. Click the photo below to see resources we have compiled to help you reduce your stress and promote wellness in your offices.
National Center for State Courts Explainer Video Series
Presented in English and Spanish, this new access to justice explainer video library offers eight short videos that courts nationwide can use to assist the public:
Check the videos out on the NCSC Website.
Coroner Talk Podcast
At a recent program, Judge Woolley suggested a podcast he enjoys on the topic of inquests. We thought some other judges may be interested. It’s presented by Darren Drake, the elected coroner for the county in Missouri in which he resides. You can find the podcast on YouTube, https://coronertalk.com/, or wherever you get your podcasts.
We hope that these resources are helpful, and we look forward to seeing you at a program soon!
Thea and the TJCTC Team
Here is an article that provides details on the increase of drunk driving deaths throughout the nation.
Hello Judges, Constables, and Court Staff,
We have several important updates for you, including some recent caselaw updates. Please make sure you read the full email.
SB 4 Update
There have been a few more rulings on SB 4, but the current state of the law is still that S.B. 4 is not in effect. We will keep you updated if anything changes.
In the meantime, TJCTC resources have been updated to reflect the impact of SB 4 on justice courts in the event that it goes into effect.
The Magistration Deskbook has been updated. See page 60-61 for updates related to SB 4.
U.S. Supreme Court Issues Opinion Related to Social Media and Liability for Public Officials
You may need to talk to your county attorney about what steps you need to take to ensure that your private social media accounts don’t open you up to potential liability.
In Lindke v. Freed, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously held that a public servant who:
could open themselves to potential liability if they block people from seeing their posts from their private accounts on social media.
The example they give is a mayor officially announcing on his personal Facebook page that he is using his authority under a local ordinance to suspend enforcement of certain parking rules. If that were the case, the mayor would be unable to block citizens from access to his personal Facebook page.
The Court gives an example that might be worth following:
Had official’s account carried a label (example: “this is the personal page of [insert official’s name]”) or a disclaimer (example: “the views expressed are strictly my own”), the official would be entitled to a heavy (though not irrebuttable) presumption that all of the posts on their page were personal and not in their official capacity.
It’s probably time to edit your personal pages to make sure that this language is there.
The Court also states “an official who uses his staff to make a post will be hard pressed to deny that he was conducting government business.”
It is a best practice to keep your personal social media accounts and official social media accounts separate and not ask any employees to post or maintain your personal accounts.
The Court is very clear that a public official can have private speech and can limit who receives that private speech. There are going to be “hard-to-classify cases,” so you will need to talk to your county attorney about any advice or policies they may put into practice in your county.
Texas Court of Criminal Appeals (CCA) Rules that Refusal of Consent to Search NOT an Indication of Criminal Activity
Lall v. State is a straightforward opinion from the CCA that holds that a defendant’s lawful refusal to consent to a search cannot be considered in making a determination of probable cause or reasonable suspicion. This decision is consistent with how courts have treated a defendant’s assertion of other constitutional rights, like when a person invokes their Fifth Amendment right to remain silent as not being admissible as evidence of guilt.
State Bar Justice Court Section Webinar
The State of Debt Collection in Justice Courts, 1 hr
According to a 2018 Federal Reserve report, there were 59.5 Billion debit or credit card swipes a year in the United States. That boils down to 165 million swipes/day; approximately 15% of which occur in Texas (25 million/day; 1.8 million/hour; 30,000/minute; 500/sec). That’s a lot of plastic. Since then, things have only increased. This course will look at trends in the consumer debt arena both in terms of activity and evolving debt types and will review how these claims ultimately arrive and are presented to the courts. Topics will include digital documentation and an orientation to “fin-tech” debt.
Additionally, with increased activity comes increased scrutiny. This course will explore both the operational focus of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the current regulatory environment, including the Fair Debt Practices Act and the more recently enacted Reg. F. Included will be a discussion of the Model Validation Notice, the limitations on contact activity and methods of communication, as well as the opportunities presented by the utilization of digital platforms.
Speaker: Michael Scott
April 12, 2024 at 12:00 PM CDT
Zoom Registration: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZEkfuGrrTIpEtNHsq828Gj7GumB9calOPk0%20#/registration
NCSC Webinars and Programs
Tiny Chats
Do you watch the NCSC Tiny Chats? They are short videos on topics related to court procedures and increasing fairness and confidence in the courts. The most recent Tiny Chat is about chat bots and how they can be helpful to court websites. Also, NCSC is partnering with Law Droid to build a lucky court a chat bot for free.
Highlights in Fines and Fees Reform
Later this week, watch our own Texas Supreme Court Chief Justice, Nathan Hecht, as he moderates a discussion about how several states are updating how they handle fines and fees.
April is Retiring
Our wonderful Office Coordinator April Williams is retiring at the end of April. If you have any well-wishes you would like to pass along, please email Jessica at jessforeman@txstate.edu.
We hope the month of April is kicking off to a great start in your courts and offices!
Thea & the TJCTC Team