A Sunflower County judicial court issue came up at Monday’s meeting of the Sunflower County Board of Supervisors and Attorney Johnny McWilliams said this is not its initial appearance.
Based on an entry in the book Fevers, Floods and Faith, it is a century-old concern that was once addressed in 1916.
This week Sunflower County Northern District Justice Court Judge Lisa Bell raised the issue before county lawmakers once again when she expressed her desire to institute a second judicial district by establishing a court room in Ruleville.
"Basically, I want to discuss with you the feasibility of having a full-service Justice Court in the Ruleville building. Right now we don't have a courtroom, but we do have court every third Wednesday of the month," she said.
Bell based her request on the fact that Sunflower County is one of the state's longest counties, distance wise, and that it takes residents in the Rome community an hour to drive to Indianola for court, Bell said she couldn't see why it had not already been done. "I didn't understand why it hadn't been done already because it just makes sense."
The northern district judge said that when she started looking at the facility, she realized that she has everything that she needs to establish a court.
"Everything that was available there was what we needed to have everything (court) there."
Bell reasoned that citizens in communities like Rome and Drew would be better served and not subjected to travel inconveniences. She said based on the information she has, Ruleville makes a "great income" even without having a courtroom there.
“We will look even better if we were able to fully service people there," she said.
Bell said establishing a court in Ruleville just makes sense. "For the people and for the economics, for the money purposes."
She continued, “And so, the only thing I'm asking today, the building just doesn't have a courtroom, that would make us full-service that would make us able to do the same thing as Indianola Justice Court.”
However, Southern District Justice Court Judge Gwendolyn Pernell disagreed with Bell's assessment.
"To me, it does not make sense,” she said. “Number one, Sunflower County is only one judicial district and it's been like that for ages, forever as far as I know of. Number two, the Ruleville office is just what it is, an office. It was never meant to be a courtroom.”
Pernell expressed her disdain at Bell's handling of the matter.
“If Judge Bell had called or discussed this with Mrs. Strong and I, then we wouldn't be oblivious to what's going on today and why we are here. And number two, I've been on the bench for 17 years Judge (Stafford) Shurden (had) served numerous years on the bench and not one time has any litigant complained about having a hardship to come to Indianola, which is the seat of Sunflower County."
Pernell continued by saying that the civil court normally held in Ruleville, which according to her, only lasts about 10 minutes, has been conducted by Shurden over the past few years because she (Pernell) also has a full-time job.
“Judge Bell only been on the bench, what, just literally yesterday. Have no clue as to why or can even justify why there should be a separate courtroom,” Pernell insisted.
The southern district judge further drove home her point by saying that Sunflower County is made up of only one judicial district and is not required by law to have more than one courtroom.
“Why would you think that the district can be divided into two judicial districts, that's just not happening, that's never been and it's not going to happen,” Pernell said.
Pernell also named other surrounding counties that only have one courtroom but serve the entire county.
She also challenged Bell's claim that persons complained about having to drive to Indianola for court.
"I find it hard to believe that there are litigants that complain about having to drive to Indianola, Mississippi. I've never had that before. Nobody's ever petitioned my court for it. So, all of a sudden now you have someone that will feel more comfortable going to the Ruleville office?"
Pernell seemingly addressed what she felt was Bell's perception of the proposed change.
"I don't know who Judge Bell is getting information from. I read the proposal and to me, it just really doesn't make sense. It's just stuff that was Googled, has no justification why we are even here today."
Pernell stated that she had talked to Bell earlier on and that Bell had never mentioned anything about the idea of having two court rooms.
And the issue of communication was also brought up and Pernell said she felt like they should have been able to discuss the matter before bringing it before the board.
“I am very disappointed Judge Bell and I can tell you that right now,” she said.
Pernell also addressed the issue of the space allotted in Ruleville and said it was ample for the few brief civil cases that Bell overseas in that jurisdiction.
"Now, if Judge Bell has an issue with the office in Ruleville then maybe we can route those cases to Sunflower County and that will clear that up,” she said.
Justice Court Clerk Patricia Strong also weighed in on the matter and addressed Bell. “Things like that you should confront me first. You went down to the deputy clerks and I should have known about taking anything. According to the statute, you cannot take anything outside of the courtroom, people have personal information on there.”
Strong also expressed a desire for greater communication saying it was the key to them being able to work together.
“I thought that's what we were aiming for, working together. That's what we're here for, to work together,” Strong said.
Strong chided Bell for taking and using the deputy clerks to gain information instead of coming directly to her.
“This was all like a secret and we're supposed to work together,” she said. “We're supposed to be colleagues, but you took the initiative to keep everything hidden and that's not fair to us.”
Strong laid out her duties and responsibilities as the clerk to Bell, which included motivating the clerks to do their job. Seemingly referring to the clerk in the Ruleville office,
Strong said, “I have to keep them working because if you had come and sat in my office, I would have showed you, I have a camera there and they sit there and do nothing. I have to tell them each month, 'you all start calling people.’ If you don't tell them they're not going to do it.”
She told Bell that it was not fair to her that she used the deputy clerks to get her figures and did not tell her what she was doing. She also acknowledged that she made it clear to Bell when she started that she was going to be there to assist her with whatever she needed.
Pernell injected that Bell's lack of consideration in alerting them that this was her plan was “a slap in the face.”
In her rebuttal Bell said, she had originally just come there to discuss the court room, but now felt as if her character was being brought into question, she felt the need to address it.
"Since my character is on the table, I have to go into the things that I didn't want to go into," she said.
Bell acknowledged that Pernell and Strong had come into her courtroom to assist and that the issue of communication had been discussed. "And I told you I appreciated every minute of that," she said.
Bell then stated that when she started asking for certain supplies, some of which she never received, she was confronted with old cases, "Five to seven years old," she said. So, she questioned why those old cases were coming up now.
Bell then said, "You've been there for five years, I've been there like you all like to say for four months or six months; however you put it, but the first thing that happened was, 'you're going to have to hear all of these old cases.”
Bell explained her position. “Now in my mind, I am a business major, so the first thing I thought was it doesn't seem right that old cases are just sitting in the office that couldn't have been found yesterday." Strong insisted that it wasn't her fault.
At that point, Board President Riley Rice attempted to redirect the discussion.
"I have a suggestion here. Are you all satisfied with what you have said that you have expressed yourself?"
He then suggested that the members be allowed to take the information under advisement, but Bell resisted.
“Well, I felt like I wasn't totally heard," Bell said, "I gave them an opportunity to speak."
Bell again restated her purpose for coming before the board and added,
"The only thing it seems like they have a complaint about is the fact that I didn't tell them," Bell said she felt her proposal was feasible which is what she actually came in to discuss. “I didn't come to argue with my clerk, I didn't come to argue with my senior judge, that was not what I was available for,” she said.
With regard to the courtroom, Bell said, “Just because we haven't had one, doesn't mean that it wasn't necessary.”
Then addressing Strong's earlier statement about the clerks in Ruleville just sitting up there, Bell said, “Maybe they're sitting there because they do not have enough to do.”
She added that instead of just saying that it was something that has never been done before that they really should look into it. “You can't say that just because you don't like me that the feasibility of the project is just bad,” she said.
She said all of the things that are going on the office would never have been brought up because she only came to discuss the feasibility of the courtroom project.
“I didn't Google this, I got this from the Judicial College.” And she reasoned that it is feasible to have more than one court.
Attorney Johnny McWilliams confirmed that Sunflower County has only one Judicial District, but two election districts; however, there are 9 to 14 other counties within the state that have two judicial districts. He said legally you are required to have a courthouse in each Judicial District, which is why Sunflower County only has one.
He said what the county now has is legally sufficient and added, "You are not legally required to have a second office in Ruleville, that is a matter of convenience that a former Board of Supervisors determined would be a good idea."
Addressing the Board, McWilliams said they are not legally required to do more than they are already doing, but they are legally authorized to do more if they had a desire to.
He explained that often times people are confused by election lines, which are not Judicial District districts and the election lines were derived to even out the voting process for the two judicial judges.
District 4 Supervisor Anthony Clark asked that the board take the request under advisement.
"I think it's something that we should look into and take all considerations for the county and for the citizens whether we do it or whether we don't do it,” he said.
Afterwards, McWilliams supplied the members with information documented in the book Fevers, Floods and Faith that states in part that certain citizens made an effort in 1916 to establish a second judicial district in Ruleville because it was a two-day ordeal for residents of Rome, Ruleville and Drew to transact business in the Indianola courthouse.
