Lincolnshire could handle some tickets with administrative hearings
People ticketed for parking violations or other minor infractions in Lincolnshire could face local hearings instead of circuit court appearances starting in 2015.
Advocates say administrative adjudication programs save the village money because police officers don't have to drive to county courthouses to testify during trials. Residents don't have to make long drives to court to fight tickets, either.
The adjudication process also lets towns keep all the fines generated by the cases. Fines generated by court trials are shared with other agencies through court costs.
Police Chief Peter Kinsey spoke to trustees about the proposal during a committee-of-the-whole session Monday night. No final decisions were made.
State law allows towns without home-rule powers to establish administrative hearings for local violations. In Lake County, Antioch, Fox Lake, Gurnee, Hawthorn Woods, Libertyville and Vernon Hills are among the towns that have done so.
"We're hoping to replicate the success of our neighboring communities," Village Manager Brad Burke told the Daily Herald.
The proceedings are less formal than circuit court. Under state law, hearing officers must be licensed attorneys.
They're generally paid $150 per hour for their work, which often takes up about four hours a month, Kinsey said.
Loud dog complaints, curfew violations, building code violations and parking tickets are among the cases typically handled by administrative hearing officers.
Speeding tickets or any action that results in a misdemeanor or felony charge still goes to circuit court.
Kinsey suggested Lincolnshire's hearings begin with police-issued tickets. The program could expand to handle other village ordinances later, he said.
Village attorney Adam Simon asked if trustees would be interested in sharing an administrating hearing system with a neighboring town, such as Buffalo Grove. No one objected.
The system could be in place during the first half of 2015, Burke said.