Published: Saturday, December 9, 2006
Court dismisses judge's request
The mayor believes this decision will pull Girard out of fiscal recovery next year.
GIRARD — The Ohio Supreme Court has dismissed a municipal court judge's request for additional funding.
Girard Mayor James Melfi said he believes the dismissal is the end of the ongoing financial battle with Municipal Judge Michael Bernard.
Judge Bernard refused to comment when reached Friday evening.
"He has to come back to city council and work it out with city council," the mayor said.
Judge Bernard and city officials were at odds over his court funding. The judge requested $905,000, and city officials gave him $800,000 for 2006.
The judge laid off 11 employees when his funding ran out. He intends to recall them when the 2007 funding is implemented.
Judge Bernard went to the state Supreme Court with the hope of getting more money to bring the employees back to work sooner.
City officials claim the judge's lack of funds was the result of his administrative mismanagement and not insufficient funding by the city.
Fiscal emergency
"It really sets the stage for the recovery of our community," Melfi said.
According to the mayor, the city should be out of fiscal emergency next year. The mayor said he believes the $2.7 million deficit which put the city in fiscal emergency was partially due to court costs, including the construction of a new justice center in 1999.
A state commission has been in place since the city was placed in state-imposed fiscal emergency in 2001.
Melfi said he intends to ask for additional police personnel on Monday since the court funding issue appears to have been resolved. He said he also hopes to increase other city services.
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