Welcome to Florida Traffic Ticket Defense              
SEARCH   
 
  Welcome Guest!   Main Account FAQ Search Consultation Email     
Translate



FL Traffic Ticket Defense

Main Menu
· Home

Law Offices
· About Us

FAQs
· Traffic Ticket FAQs

Online Consultation
· Submit Your Info

Driving Directions
· To Our Office in Southwest Ranches

Modules
· AvantGo
· Downloads
· FAQ
· Members List
· News
· Recommend Us
· Reviews
· Search
· Sections
· Stats
· Topics
· Top List
· Web Links

FL Traffic Ticket Defense

Florida DUI Defender
· Enhanced DUI Reduced to Reckless Driving
· How We Neutralize the State's Most Powerful Weapon in a Refusal Case
· Illegal Traffic Stop Thwarts DUI Prosecution
· Holiday Drinking: A Time to Act Responsibly
· Florida Legislature Enhances DUI Penalties

FL Traffic Ticket Defense

FL Seal & Expunge
· Law Update: Two Recent & Noteworthy Appellate Decisions On Sealing and Expungement
· "Automatic Expungement" of Juvenile Criminal Records
· Can Multiple Arrests or Offenses Be Sealed or Expunged?
· Welcome Drug Court Graduates!

FL Traffic Ticket Defense

Florida Immigration Law News
Judge Hanson Grants Asylum to Venezuelan Poll Worker
Physician Granted National Interest Waiver
Firm Wins Cancellation of Removal for Client in Removal Proceedings
Immigration Judge Rules Florida Simple Battery Not a Crime of Violence
Valiente Periodista de Internet Anti-Chavista Gana Asilo Politico
Courageous Anti-Chavez Internet Journalist Wins Asylum
Mr. Pakula Speaks to Immigration Lawyers About Federal Court Litigation

FL Traffic Ticket Defense

Online
There are 68 unregistered users and 0 registered users on-line.

You can log-in or register for a user account here.

FL Traffic Ticket Defense

Broward Hearing Officer Program Terminated... For Now
Posted by: dpakula on Wednesday, August 13, 2008 - 03:20 PM
News Broward's successful traffic hearing officer program is coming to an end effective August 29, 2008 due to lack of funding. On September 2, 2008, county court judges will begin hearing all of the cases formerly handled by the hearing officers. We are talking about almost 60,000 cases per month. There are a couple of issues I will discuss in this blog: first, the warped logic of scrapping a profitable program due to lack of funding; second, where does this leave us in terms of case processing and how long will it last?

I have given up on trying to make sense out of politics. But I can't help but observe the irony involved here. The magistrate program was relatively inexpensive to operate. Yet it generated about $30 million in revenue to the State, $4.2 million to the County, and $2.1 million to the Cities in Broward County.

Significantly, none of the revenues returned to fund the program. The funding came entirely from the State. So when budget cuts were inflicted on the judiciary this year, the hearing officer programs across the state fell victim. Hearing officers were vulnerable to budget cuts because it's a lot easier to fire them than to let go judicial and clerical staff.

The irony, of course, is that due to the odd way the program is funded and fiscally maintained, a program that creates huge revenues for the state is being axed due to insufficient state funding. It's almost enough to convert me into a born again partisan of the "less government is better" school of thought. But then I remember that those are the folks that are largely responsible for this mess.

So where are we now? Having been a Broward traffic hearing officer myself, I can tell you from personal experience of hearing a large volume of traffic cases that the Broward County Judges are not going to enjoy hearing those 60,000 additional cases per month in addition to their other usual responsibilities. Broward is not one of those lazy southern hamlets in which the judges have time for a round of golf in the afternoon. Our judges are already really busy. Adding traffic cases to the judges' other dockets is sure to create judicial migraines.

Adding traffic cases to the county judges' responsibilities will also create problems for the administration of justice. In the very near future, the judges are going to be looking for ways to streamline the traffic dockets. The saying goes that necessity is the mother of invention. Necessity will in all likelihood force the judges to adopt indiscriminate procedures such as making across-the-board plea offers to resolve dozens of cases in one fell swoop.

In my view, this would not serve the interests of justice. The judiciary is supposed to judge each case on its merits, rather than lumping a bunch of cases into the same processing bin. The judges may devise a better streamlining method than the one I have mentioned, and I wish them the best of luck in finding a fair solution. However, I cannot imagine that the judges will be able to devise a more efficient and judicially sound method of hearing cases than the hearing officer program.

I see the day coming in the not distant future when emergency funding will be located from somewhere -- I know not where -- to reinstate the traffic hearing officer program in Broward, and probably elsewhere in the State of Florida. The hearing officer program has become an integral part of our system of justice, especially in Florida's more densely populated counties. We can't afford not to fund these programs.
 
Related links
· More about News
· News by dpakula



FL Traffic Ticket Defense

 


Florida Traffic Ticket Defense

Florida Traffic Ticket Defense :: Attorney, Lawyer :: Defending Florida traffic tickets in Broward, Dade and Palm Beach County.

David B. Pakula, P.A.
Attorney At Law

6840 Dykes Road
Southwest Ranches, Florida 33331
(954) 217-5123
david@pakulalawfirm.com
http://floridatrafficticketdefense.com

Lawyer Serving Fort Lauderdale, Weston, Aventura, Pembroke Pines, Southwest Ranches, Davie, Cooper City, Miramar, Plantation, Hollywood, Hallandale, Aventura, Miami, Boca Raton, Delray Beach, Boynton Beach, Palm Beach, and Southeastern Florida (Broward County, Palm Beach County and Dade County) since 1987.

Mr. Pakula served as a Broward County Traffic Court Magistrate from 2002 to 2004. He is board certified by The Florida Bar in appellate practice and has handled trial and appellate litigation in state and federal courts since 1987. The law firm of David B. Pakula, P.A. is rated AV by Martindale-Hubbell. Mr. Pakula is a member of the U.S. District Courts for the Southern and Northern Districts of Florida, the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the 7th Circuit, the 11th Circuit and the D.C. Circuit, and The United States Supreme Court.

Nothing in this web site should be construed as legal advice to you and does not establish an attorney client relationship between us. You should not rely upon any information contained herein without separate independent legal research and advice. Our law firm is under no obligation to respond to correspondence, including, without limitation, email, until a written retainer agreement is executed. Nothing contained herein should be construed as an endorsement of any and all products or services contained herein or accessible herethrough.

By using this web site you agree to abide by our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

Our Designated Agent Under 17 U.S.C. 512(c)(2) to Receive Notification of Claimed Copyright Infringement and Registered Agent to Accept Service of Process is: Mr. David B. Pakula, Esq., President of David B. Pakula, P.A., a Florida Professional Association, 6840 Dykes Road, Southwest Ranches, Florida 33331, Phone: (954) 217-5123, Email: david@pakulalawfirm.com.

You may use our RSS newsfeed http://floridatrafficticketdefense.com/backend.php to display our news at your website.

The hiring of a lawyer is an important decision that should not be based solely upon advertisements. Before you decide, ask us to send you free written information about our qualifications and experience. You may view Mr. Pakula's qualifications and experience here.

Not all results are provided, the results are not necessarily representative of results obtained by the lawyer, and a prospective client’s individual facts and circumstances may differ from the matter in which the results are provided.

ADVERTISEMENT

c. 2004 David B. Pakula, P.A.
FloridaTrafficTicketDefense.comTM is a Mark of David B. Pakula, P.A.
All Rights Reserved

Website by CyberLaw.Info
Page created in 0.052968 Seconds