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Release
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BRIDGETON JOINT MUNICIPAL COURT HONORED FOR
PERFORMANCE EXCELLENCE
What started as a cost
saving measure- combining the Bridgeton and Fairfield Municipal Courts into one
combined Court- has turned out to be a model of excellence.
At least that’s the opinion
of the State Administrative Office of the Courts who honored Bridgeton’s
Municipal Court with its “Excellence in Overall Performance” award for 2015 for
Vicinage XV which covers Cumberland, Salem, and Gloucester Counties.
In addition to the Court’s
top performance award, Bridgeton Municipal Court Administrator Marie Keith
received an award for excellence in work performance for Cumberland County from
Vicinage XV.
“We are extremely proud of
Marie and her team at the court. We had a busy Court as it was and they’ve done
a fantastic job working with our Fairfield Township neighbors to make our
combined Court among the very best and that’s quite an achievement” said
Bridgeton Mayor Albert B. Kelly.
The Bridgeton Court took
over all of Fairfield Township’s Court-related duties on May 1, 2015 as part of
a shared services agreement. Under the deal, Bridgeton receives $52,000
annually while Fairfield Township receives its share of the fines and penalties
monthly, which saves $20,000 a year for Fairfield.
The joint Municipal Court is
the busiest municipal court in Vicinage XV, which has 26 courts in total;
ranking sixth among New Jersey’s fifteen Vicinages. In terms of volume, the
Bridgeton Municipal Court handled 23,273 cases from July 2014 to June 2015;
roughly 10% of the 238,764 cases handled in Vicinage XV during that period.
“I am delighted that our Court
was recognized for excellence and I’m personally honored to receive an award
for performance, but this represents a lot of hard work by the court staff every
day, including our judges and court officers- it’s truly a team effort” said
Court Administrator Marie Keith.
“The prospect of a joint Municipal
Court was discussed with a number of townships over the years, but it never
happened for any number of reasons. In working with Fairfield, shared services
made sense; we’re able to serve our residents and achieve savings- it’s a win
for both communities and it shows what shared services can do” said Kelly.
Court Administrator Marie
Keith and court staff were formally recognized by Mayor Albert Kelly and
Bridgeton City Council at the January 19th City Council meeting.
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To learn more about the City of Bridgeton,
please visit www.cityofbridgeton.com
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