Night court docket offers flexibility in Montgomery
Having come down with polio as a baby, Baldomero Flores 15 years ago started to develop postpolio syndrome. As a result, Flores, 52, can spend nearly 20 minutes trying to get out of bed in the morning and relies on an electric wheelchair for mobility.
Flores, a Spring resident, was relieved to have his suspended driver’s license case assigned to the Montgomery County Precinct 3 Justice of the Peace Court’s evening docket. The schedule allowed him ample time to get to the courtroom at 1520 Lake Front Circle in The Woodlands.
“Because of my disability, if they had put me in the morning, I would have had trouble getting up and this or that,” Flores said as he maneuvered himself into his Nissan Quest van.
Montgomery County Precinct 3 is the only night court in any of the county’s five justice of the peace precincts, and instituted last year by presiding JP Judge Matt Beasley.
The evening docket is held periodically for people like Flores facing Class C misdemeanor charges, including traffic violations. Tuesday’s session was the fourth of five evening dockets this year. Flores was one of 97 scheduled to appear that night.
The evening sessions, Beasley says, help avoid a second court which requires more salaried staffing. It has also helped achieve a priority court goal of speedy case dispositions.
“The community is growing,” he said. “I’m trying to do my best to keep that court as efficient as it can be.”
People’s court
Precinct 3 is in south county residents’ backyard, not miles away like the Montgomery County Courthouse in downtown Conroe. Most people forego legal counsel, Beasley said, choosing to represent themselves in the court.
Beasley took over judgeship from Edie Connelly, who for 32 years presided over the court. While campaigning door-to-door for the seat, Beasley said a common concern he heard from voters was wanting more court accessibility. Offering a night court became a platform issue for him.
The court oversees parts of Spring and The Woodlands. Beasley said criminal court filings in his jurisdiction have risen by 18 percent with civil cases going up by around 20 percent. Staffing numbers meanwhile have stayed the same, Beasley said.
Easier access
Making it to morning and afternoon dockets can be problematic for those who work and have childcare scheduling conflicts, Beasley said. Not making it to court carries the risk of a failure to appear arrest warrant being issued. One group who finds night court convenient are day laborers or contract workers., Beasley said.
“It’s not easy for them to make it to court,” he said of daytime workers who request the evening docket. “That’s why (the night court is) important to me.”
Some of those who have taken advantage of the evening docket shake his hand, commending him for making the court available during times that work for them, he said.
A suspended driver’s license brought Flores to Beasley’s court. Flores said his current situation is the culmination of a series of mishaps starting with Hurricane Harvey.
His home near Buffalo Bayou flooded and for three months he struggled to find a handicap accessible place to live. In the process of changing addresses, he discovered his driver’s license was suspended following a 2007 ticket for a broken taillight.
Before night court , Flores squeezed into the crowded but hushed courtroom. People sitting in the wooden pews and standing against the walls listened in as a bailiff and a Spanish-language interpreter gave instructions.
At the start, Beasley asked those in attendance who were looking to plead guilty or no contest to line up to approach him. The defendants were assured he would consider deferred disposition, which dismisses charges after a certain period absent another offense and possibly including other remedies like community service or treatment programs. He would also spend time weighing whether to lower their fine.
Flores hurried to the jury box where pretrial defendants took a spot. This is where those contesting their charges met with court prosecutors assigned by the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office through their misdemeanor division. Assistant District Attornies Erica Ortega and Jaime Wallace were on duty .
In that capacity, Ortega and Wallace were the only ones in the court who could dismiss a defendant’s case or offer pretrial diversion, an alternative similar to what deferred disposition provides. If no agreement could be reached between a prosecutor and the defendant, then the case would go to trial by judge or jury.
But Wallace dismissed Flores’ charge on account he had proof of a valid driver’s license. Outside the building at dusk , Flores showed off his Texas driver’s license to rid any doubt it was suspended.
“It was perfect,” Flores said about the night court arrangement. The evening “was best for me.”