A recent court order has handed control of day-to-day operations at Pima County Consolidated Justice Court to the presiding Superior Court judge as it reviews the Justice Court’s administrative operations.
Administrative duties of the Consolidated Justice Court have for years been the responsibility of the chief administrative judge.
The court order, issued earlier this month, says Superior Court Presiding Judge Kyle Bryson will supervise the Justice Court, including administrative and managerial operations, and determine whether any changes need to be made to its leadership structure.
Judge Adam Watters, presiding justice of the peace for the Pima County Consolidated Justice Court, said the court order was the result of a letter five of the eight justices of the peace wrote to the Arizona Supreme Court, asking them to review how their court was being operated.
“The reality is the concerns were with the administrative side of what was happening and that was what we told the Supreme Court and they apparently agreed there were some concerns there,” he said.
The order comes after Lisa Royal, justice court administrator, resigned last month after pleading guilty to a DUI charge from New Year’s Day.
Bryson said Royal’s DUI and resignation “was one of many compounding factors that led to the frayed relationships” and communication problems among the judges and administration at the Justice Court.
Robert Brutinel, chief justice of the Arizona Supreme Court, issued the order because those frayed relationships had started to impede the administration of the court, Bryson said.
He said the justices of the peace and administrative staff workers at the Justice Court have been professional and cooperative as he learns what day-to-day management of the court is like.
“It’s really impractical for a county presiding judge to be responsible for the day-to-day activities of all the courts in the county,” Bryson said.
“So I’m relying very heavily on Consolidated Justice Court administrative staff and justices of the peace.”
The court order also appoints Kent Batty, former Superior Court administrator who is coming out of retirement temporarily, as interim Justice Court administrator.
Watters said he fully expects the changes to be temporary, and it’s up to Bryson to appoint a new chief administrative judge to take over the court’s administrative operations again.
The court hears civil, traffic, DUI, small claims, eviction and protective order cases.
