Loss of Niles courthouse, even part time would be tragic

Published 10:05 am Saturday, July 11, 2009

By Staff
Just because the economic crisis is old news doesn't mean that it's over. For the Berrien County Commissioners who are dealing with the county's budget crunch, one of the possible solutions that has been considered is the closing, or the reduction to part time status, of the South County Courthouse in Niles. This is a bad idea. It would have a devastating impact on Niles and would result in an unfair deprivation of services and access to the justice system for the residents of all of the South County communities.
Without a courthouse in Niles, if you or your family member were charged with a crime (or traffic ticket), or were a victim of a crime, or were subpoenaed as a witness to a crime, you would be driving to St. Joseph (perhaps multiple trips) to handle the matter. And the business of the courthouse involves much more than criminal cases. The court's civil docket could include your landlord/tenant dispute, your divorce, custody or visitation hearings, your debt/creditor claim, or your property dispute.
If your loved one needed a Personal Protection order (restraining order), or if you are handling the estate of a deceased family member, or asking to be appointed guardian of a family member, of if you were damaged by fraud or negligence, or wanted to file a small claims action, you are either going to be in court in Niles or in St. Joseph.
The closing, or limiting to part time status, of the South County Courthouse would not only eliminate or severely limit your access to a prompt and convenient justice system, it would also limit your access to many other non-judicial services. These include your passport application, copies of vital records, dog licenses, death certificates, replacement of birth certificates, marriage licenses, concealed weapons permit, notary public applications, assumed name, copartnership documents for businesses and more.
There would also be many other negative consequences for South County communities. When local police make an arrest of a person who cannot be released on bond, that defendant is held in the jail at the Law Enforcement Complex in Niles until transportation to the Niles Courthouse the next business day for arraignment. Based upon 2008 statistics, if the South County Courthouse were closed, local police would have to make approximately 67 round trips per month transporting defendants to St. Joseph. Each round trip, including procedures associated with delivering the defendant to the jail, take approximately 2 1/2 hours.
If the courthouse were reduced to part time status, the number of transports to St. Joseph could still be significant. Every one of those transports by local police would either reduce the force policing the community, or increase overtime pay in that police agencies budget (along with gasoline and vehicle maintenance costs).
The courthouse in Niles is much more than a satellite extension of the courthouse in St. Joseph. The number of cases handled in Niles as a percentage of all county cases increases each year. The dynamics of local growth has changed dramatically over the years. The southern part of Berrien County is now, de facto, a part of Michiana, a community of approximately 1,000,000 residents. Many of those Indiana residents end up in the Niles courthouse for one reason or another. The closing of the Niles courthouse or reduction of services there, would seriously overload the existing capacity of the courthouse in St. Joseph.
There is also immeasurable intangible losses to a community occasioned by the closing or reduction of its courthouse. For the most part, the employees at the courthouse live in those communities. The collective knowledge of a stable, full-time courthouse staff not only makes the justice system work more efficiently, but also contributes to a wiser and safer community. The courthouse employee who lives in your neighborhood may recognize a peril that you wouldn't notice, or give advice that would help you resolve a problem, or avoid a problem.
There have always been certain institutions which have been the hallmarks of a vibrant community. Traditionally, these have been the schools, hospitals, banks, retail stores, police stations and the courthouses. The loss or reduction of a courthouse weakens each of these other institutions, and would make this community appear less stable and less attractive to businesses that may have considered moving here.
You should care about this issue. You should express to the local officials with the power to decide that you expect them to be creative enough to resolve the county's budget challenges without eliminating any services at the South County Courthouse in Niles.