Chief Justice Warns Cuts Will Delay Cases

Courts are closing and hundreds will be laid off.

To help deal with the $1.6 billion budget gap, the judicial branch will lay off 452 of its 3,856 full-time staff, eliminating a total of 602 positions, and close one main courthouse and three juvenile courthouses, among other cuts.

“Access will be limited and we also anticipate that the resolution of civil, family, housing and small claims cases will be delayed. The end result is that our ability to administer justice as required by the Constitution may very well be compromised,” Chief Justice Chase Rogers said in a statement issued on Friday.

Criminal cases with be the judicial system’s top priority, Rogers said.

The courts will be operating with 30 percent of the employees who normally work in the courts, Rogers said.

“We don’t have the option of turning away any cases, so we must do our best to adjudicate the over 550,000 cases that come to our courts every year, with significantly reduced funding,” Rogers said. “Clearly, it is necessary to prioritize, and I can assure you that criminal cases will be our top priority. But this means that our limited resources must be stretched to also assist parties in family and civil matters, including many who are self-represented.”

The plan, which you can access here, also includes closing Enfield GA 13 and the juvenile courts in Torrington, Danbury and Rockville. Juvenile matters in Middletown will move to the Middlesex Judicial District.

The plan includes moving criminal and court-required motor vehicle matters handled by Derby GA 5 to the Milford Judicial District courthouse and moving criminal and court-required motor vehicle matters from Bristol GA 17 to New Britain GA 15.

It also calls for closing the law libraries in the Danbury Judicial District courthouse, the Hartford Judicial District courthouse, the Litchfield Judicial District courthouse, the Putnam courthouse, the Willimantic courthouse and the Tolland Judicial District courthouse.

The plan also eliminates the drug court programs in Bridgeport, New Haven and Danielson and the school-based mediation program in New Haven.

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