Bella Vista eyes own district court

All cases are now heard in Bentonville District Court.

With the cost to use the district court in Bentonville rising, Bella Vista officials are exploring other avenues — the most promising of which seems to be opening up court in Bella Vista.

Mayor Peter Christie said that Bentonville’s charge for Bella Vista’s use of Bentonville District Court are set to increase from $8,700 per month to $13,700, and that’s after negotiating it down from more than $15,000.

“That’s quite an increase,” he said.

Christie said he spoke with Pea Ridge Mayor Jack Crabtree about moving Bella Vista’s court sessions to Pea Ridge, which would be relatively close and more affordable. After examining what it would take to do this, he said, officials from both cities agreed it would not be the ideal solution.

A significant obstacle, he said, was maintaining physical and digital files. These would need to remain in Pea Ridge, he said, not Bella Vista. The entire operation, he said, would simply be too cumbersome to be of any real benefit.

“The best alternative,” he said, “would be to establish our own court. But that’s not as easy as it sounds.”

Jason Kelley, staff attorney for the city of Bella Vista, said that it requires an act of the legislature, which would create a district court in Bella Vista. The city could then hire a court clerk and other personnel, but the judge would remain the same.

“Instead of hearing cases in Bentonville,” Kelley said, “he will hear them here in Bella Vista.”

He said that the city will be in contact with the State Court Resource Assessment Board, a body that makes suggestions to the state legislature, and the city will be pushing to get the matter of establishing a court branch in Bella Vista on the agenda.

It’s hard, he said, to estimate when this court could actually

be established. Assuming a bill is approved this spring, he said, that bill would probably have an effective date.

“I think if we started it

January 2018, it would be a big push,” he said.

The middle of 2018, he said, is probably more feasible, but setting up a court will take a bare minimum of eight to 12 months.

Not having court in the city, Kelley said, is problematic.

Bella Vista has court one day each month, which

means a large chunk of Bella Vista’s police force can be tied up on that one day.

Moreover, those officers, as well as witnesses and the accused, must travel all the way into Bentonville, he said. Someone who simply wishes to pay their ticket, he said, still has to go to Bentonville.

If the court was in Bella

Vista, he said, those officers would be able to leave and take care of matters, if needed, and nobody would have to travel as far to attend a court session or pay a fine.

“We’re definitely, I think, the largest city in Arkansas without a court,” Kelley said. “I think I can safely say that. It’s become unwieldy.”

And of course, cost is a significant motivator, he said.

There’s no animosity toward Bentonville, he said, and the city needs access to a court. Case loads, he said, have been going up for every city in the area, and that could be a contributor. But for the amount that Bella Vista

would have to pay, he said, setting up a court in the city would be ideal.

And while he thinks the city can save money, he said, even if it breaks even it’s worthwhile to improve service for the community.

“It’s a citizen convenience, it’s a witness convenience,” he said. “It’s just a better decision.”