By Ashley M. Casey
Staff Writer
Officials in the town of Salina do not seem enthused about the prospect of absorbing the caseload of the Liverpool Village Court — but the town has little choice in the matter.
The Liverpool Village Board of Trustees voted April 14 to abolish the village court over the protests of Village Justice Anthony LaValle. Village residents can force a referendum on the issue if they can gather 229 signatures on a petition by May 15.
“We don’t have a choice,” Salina Town Supervisor Mark Nicotra said at the April 25 town board meeting. “If they abolish it, we take it.”
“The village made the decision to abolish the court and they don’t know the impact,” LaValle said.
Should the town absorb the village court, Salina residents could see a hike in their tax bills.
“We’re going to take the brunt of this financially,” Salina Town Justice Paul Carey said.
LaValle told the town board that abolishing the village court would be costly for the village as well, since Liverpool will have to maintain its court records.
The village of Liverpool would give up more than $70,000 in revenue from fines to the town of Salina, whose court already operates at a deficit, said First Ward Councilor Colleen Gunnip, whose constituency includes the village. LaValle said the village and town courts already hand over much of their revenue to state surcharges.
“Revenue would go to hiring more staff,” said Salina Town Justice Andrew Piraino. “We’re busting at the seams.”
According to LaValle, Liverpool Village Court handles roughly 500 cases per month. LaValle also said Salina Town Court has the highest caseload in Onondaga County, and Piraino said about one-fifth of counsel assignments in the county are for defendants in Salina and Liverpool. If Salina takes on Liverpool’s cases, Piraino’s “conservative estimate” is that the town court’s caseload would increase by 3,000 cases per year.
If the village board’s dissolution of the court goes through, LaValle will be out of a job when his term ends July 4.
“They’re going to lose an extraordinary man, Judge LaValle,” Carey said.
Gunnip said the village of Liverpool asked her to serve on a “fact-finding committee” on the court issue. The committee’s first meeting was scheduled for May 4. LaValle criticized the village trustees for creating the committee after they voted to abolish the court.
“There was a lot of discussion back and forth and not a lot of answers,” Gunnip said.
Gunnip said she asked the village if the town and village justices will be represented on the committee. She recommended that Salina Comptroller Greg Maxwell and Salina Town Court Clerk Jackie Tripoli be appointed to the committee. The town board voted to recommend the appointment of Maxwell and Tripoli.
“Before [residents] go to the polls in June, they deserve to have the facts,” Gunnip said.
Also on the agenda:
The town board also voted to adopt a local law defining which animals Salina residents may or may not keep as pets. The law falls under the “rules of conduct of domestic animals” in the town code. Residents may keep dogs, cats, birds, hamsters and gerbils and similar small household animals as pets, but are not allowed to keep cows, horses, mules, sheep, geese, chickens or other livestock and fowl.
