New municipal court judge looking to serve the city

WORLAND - Accepting the appointment as the Worland Municipal Court Judge was a "way to serve the city and the community" for Worland attorney Marcy Argeris.

Argeris was sworn in on Jan. 3, 2019, and has presided over court three times since her swearing in. She said she applied for the position as a way to serve but also for another chance to work with City Attorney Kent Richins and the Worland Police Department. She said she had gotten to know them during her four-year term as Washakie County Attorney.

Worland Police Chief Gabe Elliott said, "We had a really good working relationship with Marcy when she was county attorney."He said they understood what each other required regarding cases.

"It worked well and there was good communication," he added.

Argeris worked in private practice as an attorney for 16 years in Washakie County. She currently has her practice for transactional law. If any clients come before her in the municipal courtroom she will recuse herself and the case will be heard by Greybull Municipal Court Judge Randy Royal, Argeris said.

"I've had very good role models for judges, I've had Judge [Thomas] Harrington, Judge [Robert] Skar, Judge [Bobbie] Overfield and Judge [Ed Luhm]. So I will strive to do what they do." She said they were/are (with Harrington and Skar retired) "very thorough, very professional, very respectful in their courtrooms and I hope to follow that."

In addition to serving the community as a municipal court judge, Argeris is using her role to educate the community and students.

She said she will be participating in the upcoming Job Shadow Day for Worland Middle School eighth-graders, noting they are hoping to have some bench trials scheduled for students to observe.

Argeris was also among the judges and attorneys who participated in Liberty Day on Wednesday, March 20.

MUNICIPAL COURT

Worland Municipal Court has court scheduled regularly one day a month on the second Tuesday, but additional days are added as needed.

Argeris and Richins said they are working to address the issue of defendants not showing up for court dates. One change is moving the court time from 4 p.m. to noon.

"We want them to show up and realize court is serious," Argeris said.

The process for municipal court begins when the city drafts an ordinance, which could be unique to Worland or could follow state statute, Argeris said.

When an officer sees a violation of statute or ordinance within the city limits a citation is issued.

She said a bond can be paid for most citations and there is no need for people to appear in court. However, if a court appearance is required it will be noted on the citation. Those cases usually involve some type of restitution, Elliott and Argeris said, and can be for a vehicle crash, shoplifting, dog bite or property damage from a vandalism case.

The first time a person does not show for court they get a warning and an order to show cause is issued, requiring the person to show for a second court date. If the second date is also missed then a bench warrant is issued.

Argeris said issuing a warrant uses resources that could be used elsewhere. Police officers have to spend time tracking down the defendant when they could be patrolling or working on other cases.

The person then comes in for an arraignment where he/she can enter a plea. A not guilty plea sends the case to a bench trial.

Richins and Argeris said there are no jury trials in Worland Municipal Court.

Richins also said that the cases that come before WMC do not have jail time as a possible penalty. The only jail time would be for contempt or if a bench warrant is issued.

Elliott added that on occasion people have been taken into custody for public intoxication and spend time in the detention center until they "sober up" and are no longer a possible danger to themselves or others. They are then released with a citation for public intoxication.

He noted that driving under the influence charges are cited into Washakie County Circuit Court.

Argeris said cases move fairly quickly through the municipal court system with about two months from citation to trial. She said when someone is arrested on a bench warrant they try to get them into court as quickly as possible but they have to work out scheduling with the Circuit Court clerk since the same courtroom is used for both courts in the Washakie County courthouse.

Argeris also serves as magistrate for circuit court, filling in when Judge Luhm is unavailable.

Elliott said having Argeris as a magistrate is a benefit to law enforcement if they need a warrant signed by a judge they have can get it signed quickly with two people available to sign the warrants.