General court information provided by
Judge Langel
It should be no surprise as to what will happen when you come into my court. I have made handouts to help you if you should decide to go to trial.
Municipal Courts are created by the governing body of the municipality. In this case, by the Village of Salem Lakes. They have exclusive jurisdiction over State Statute 755.045(1) actions involving violations of municipal ordinances, under which the penalty is a forfeiture. In other words, this court does not handle any criminal matters. Those matters would go to the Circuit Court in Kenosha. We handle local issues that stem from breaking local ordinances. These could be a whole range of violations including but not limited to; traffic, truancy, boating, public nuisance, animal control, peace and order, building code, fire protection and burning restrictions.
When a citation is issued it usually has a date to appear in court written on the citation. This is your initial appearance date. You may have the option of not appearing, by just sending in the forfeiture amount shown on the citation, prior to the court appearance.
At the initial appearance in court you are asked to make a plea. There are three options. Your plea may be: Guilty, Not Guilty, or No Contest.
If you plead GUILTY, it is an admission of guilt to the charge or charges against you.
If you plead NOT GUILTY, it means that you feel you have some defense to the charge or believe it is incorrect. If you are in doubt as to which plea to enter, I suggest you plead Not Guilty. By doing so, it gives you the opportunity for a pretrial conference with the Village Attorney. Here you may explain the circumstances behind the citation and maybe come to a mutual agreement with the village as to a settlement. If an agreement is reached, you would come back before the Judge and the matter will be settled. If an agreement cannot be reached, the matter will be set for trial at a future date. Usually the following month.
A plea of NO CONTEST means that you do not wish to ADMIT any guilt. But on the other hand you won't contest the charge. Although such a plea will result in your conviction, you will not be admitting any liability should there be a subsequent lawsuit filed. An example of this would be a traffic accident. If you were the driver who was charged with failure to yield the right-of-way, a No Contest plea to this charge is not an admission of guilt, and could not be used against you in any lawsuit for damages arising from the accident.
If you plead Not Guilty and go to trial, I will give you a handout which explains the procedure and gives some tips on how to come prepared for the trial.
It will tell you on your citation whether or not a court appearance is mandatory. If it is not mandatory, an appearance can be avoided by paying the forfeiture amount shown on the citation prior to the court date.
The Judge, The Village Attorney (Prosecutor) , the Court Clerk and a Baliff.. Others present may be other defendants, witnesses, citing officer, observers, or the press. Municipal Court is an open public court except that juvenile cases will be held in a private session and is not open to the public.
It is a possibility. First, the Village Attorney may request payment for such things as witness fees ($7.00 per lay witness). The fine amount on your citation is not the maximum fine in most cases. The Judge has the authority to impose a higher fine if he/she deems it appropriate. The fine can also be lower. Finally, if you subpoena witnesses, you will not be reimbursed for these expenses even if you are found not guilty. Overall, I would be inclined to answer this question as, "Probably Not, but possible".
If you are found guilty after a trial, the judge will notify you of your appeal rights. The appeal must be filed within twenty (20) days after the Judge's decision and will be heard in the Kenosha County Circuit Court, either before a jury or a judge. You must file a written notice of appeal (the court has forms) and pay an appeal fee.
That is entirely up to you. You may, of course, choose to hire an attorney or you may represent yourself. The court will not provide you with an attorney. Although there are certain rules that must be followed, I realize most people have no experience in court. I try to help a defendant follow the right procedure so that it's not a real painful process. When entering the court room a pamphlet is provided explaining procedures. I also give an opening statement which explains these procedures. I encourage defendants to ask questions at anytime they don't quite understand something. In other words, you don't need to be an experienced defendant to make it through one of my court sessions. If you plead not guilty and choose to represent yourself at trial, a Trial Tips guide is available to give you a little guidance. Please do not be intimidated by a trial or its proceedings. It is your right to be heard, and this court will do everything possible to see that you are treated fairly.
Four Years [The term was changed by law in 2011]
Webmaster: Mike Langel SalemLakesJudge@gmail.com
This webpage is authorized, published and paid for by Mike Langel
Copyright ©2009-2020 Judge Mike Langel _ All rights reserved
