"Ask the Judge" column continues in La Prensa of SA, 5-20

Ask the Judge: A day in the life of a JP
By Judge Steve Walker

Since I have been on the bench, I have discovered that each day I preside in the courtroom is different from the day before, except when it is the same!!!

While that statement appears to be contradictory and makes you want to say, “what the?” when you think about it, it does make perfectly good sense.

Day in and day out, various members of the public enter my courtroom for various dockets, various reasons and various agendas. That makes for an exciting day every day, five days a week.

Never knowing what is going to happen next is part of the adventure.

One minute I am listening to heart wrenching stories, moments later I hear bizarre tales, next I am confronted with those comments that make you say “huh?” and narratives that make me shake my head and wonder what some people are thinking, much less spouting!

From conferring with attorneys, pre-trial hearings, directing litigants to the right clerk, signing documents by the bundle, working in an occasional wedding ceremony, (after dockets are concluded in the afternoon) it does appear to be the same, yet different.  

With two judges in Precinct 2 on a full time basis we both cover similar dockets, but not at the same time. For example, on Mondays I cover truancy dockets while Judge Donovan addresses Traffic Court and Small Claims. 

Tuesday morning I cover civil cases and in the afternoon I cover the Small Claims Court. He addresses not guilty pleas for traffic tickets all day long. He spends the time working with the Assistant District Attorney (ADA) on those cases.

Wednesday I preside over Evictions and some traffic violations while he covers traffic cases that defendants plead no contest or guilty, all day long.

Thursday I cover Truancy cases and Small Claims while he covers Evictions. On Fridays it is jury trial day and we take turns on presiding on the trials. Sometimes there are so many requests for jury trials we both preside. Many times during a pre-trial hearing both sides agree to settle or come to an agreement not to take it to a jury and as the Judge we hear the case in chambers with the litigants.

Some cases take a short period of time to complete while others take much more time to decide. Jury trials go until a verdict is reached and sometimes Justice is slow. Better slow and thorough than shortchanging those seeking a fair hearing and outcome.

Lastly as always, if you are due in court, be sure to show up to court on time. It is in everyone’s best interest.

Justice of the Peace, Pct. 2 Steve Walker is a Vietnam Veteran and a former Journalist.