Judges: WINSTON BRYANT, Attorney General
Filed Date: 4/15/1998
Status: Precedential
Modified Date: 7/5/2016
The Honorable Brent Davis Prosecuting Attorney Second Judicial District P.O. Box 491 Jonesboro, Arkansas 72403
Dear Mr. Davis:
This is in response to a request by Deputy Prosecuting Attorney James C. Hale, Jr., for an opinion concerning the jurisdiction of a municipal court. Mr. Hale's letter states that there is one municipal court located in Crittenden County, the West Memphis Municipal Court, and four city or police courts located within the county. The letter indicates that the Arkansas State Police historically have had the option to place traffic cases in the West Memphis Municipal Court regardless of the location of the arrest or traffic stop. Specifically, Mr. Hale indicates that the State Police have had the option to place a defendant in the West Memphis Municipal Court even if the traffic stop or arrest was made within the city limits of a community that has a police or city court. The question presented in light of the foregoing situation is paraphrased as follows:
Whether the State Police have the legal authority to place a traffic case in the West Memphis Municipal Court even if the traffic stop or arrest was made within the city limits of a community that has a police or city court.
In my opinion, if the individual is charged with a state misdemeanor violation committed within the county, then the answer to the question is "yes."
Initially, it is my understanding that Mr. Hale is concerned with state misdemeanor violations committed within a town or city rather than with violations of the bylaws or ordinances of a town or city. City and police courts have exclusive jurisdiction of all prosecutions and actions for infractions of the bylaws or ordinances of the city or town in which they are located. Where misdemeanor violations of state law are committed within the town or city, however, city and police courts have concurrentjurisdiction with the circuit and justice of the peace courts. A.C.A. §
Under the Arkansas Constitution, the Legislature is authorized to invest municipal courts with jurisdiction concurrent with justices of the peace in civil as well as criminal matters. Ark. Const. art.
The Arkansas Supreme Court has repeatedly upheld the General Assembly's granting of county-wide territorial jurisdiction over misdemeanors to municipal courts. See State v. Webb,
Whether the issue be referred to as one of venue or territorial jurisdiction, nothing in our Constitution or Code dealing directly with the place in which misdemeanor charges must be tried limits it to the city in which the court sits. The territorial jurisdiction of municipal courts extends throughout the counties in which they sit.
In my opinion, the fact that a state misdemeanor violation occurs in a city that has a police or city court does not alter the conclusion that the territorial jurisdiction of municipal courts extends throughout the counties in which they sit. See generally Ashworth, supra. Further, it is my opinion that if a court has jurisdiction, then the charges may be filed in that court regardless of whether it might also be possible to file the charges in some other court. More specifically, where both a city (or police) court and a municipal court have jurisdiction, nothing in Arkansas law requires a charge to be filed in the city court merely because the offense occurred within the city where that court is located. Accordingly, a person committing a state misdemeanor violation may properly be charged either in the police or city court of the city where the offense occurred or in municipal court.2
The foregoing opinion, which I hereby approve, was prepared by Assistant Attorney General Warren T. Readnour.
Sincerely,
WINSTON BRYANT Attorney General
WB:WTR/cyh