HomeMy WebLinkAboutInformation Only 050624AGENDA
INFORMATION UPDATE
May 6, 2024
4:00 PM,
I.Information Update
I.A Ordinance Violation Citations and Municipal Court Case Outcomes
Ordinance Violations and Case Findings (info only).docx
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INFORMATION ONLY MEMORANDUM
TO: Aspen City Council
FROM: Darcy Weir, City Manager’s Office Fellow
THROUGH:Sara Ott, City Manager
MEMO DATE:May 2, 2024
RE: Ordinance Violation Citations and Municipal Court Case Outcomes
PURPOSE:
No action is requested of Council. This informational memo provides Council with an
overview of City of Aspen ordinance violation citationsand municipal court case dispositions
from 2021 through 2023.
SUMMARY:
Ordinance Violation Citations from 2021-2023
From 2021 to 2023, 992 City of Aspen ordinance violation citations were issued. As
shown in Figure 1, ordinance violation citations have fluctuated over the last three
years, with citations dropping by 11 percent from 2021 to 2022 and then increasing by
15 percent from 2022 to 2023. On average, around 330 citations were issued each
year.
Figure 1. Total Ordinance Violations from 2021-2023
340
302
350
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
2021 2022 2023
Ordinance Violation Citations from
(2021-2023)
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The 992 citations issued from 2021-2023 consist of 92 categories of ordinance violations.
The most common violations cited include speeding 5-9 MPH over the prima facie limit,
speeding 10-19 MPH over the prima facie limit, maintaining and operating wildlife-proof
containers (not secured), failure to obey traffic control device/stop sign, and failing to
appear.
Figure 2 highlights the 10 most common citations issued over the last three years. As
seen below, speeding 5-9 MPH over the prima facie limit is by far the most common
citation issued, accounting for 20 percent of the total citations issued from 2021-2023.
Figure 2 Most Common Citations Issued from 2021-2023
Municipal Court Case Dispositions from 2021-2023
Over the last three years, 815 cases were disposed by the City of Aspen Municipal Court.
Figure 3 provides an overview of municipal court cases with disposition dates between
2021 and 2023. As can be seen below, the number of cases disposed of has remained
relatively consistent over the last three years, fluctuating by around 1 percent, on average,
each year.
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
Speeding 5-9 MPH Over Prima Facie Limit
Speeding 10-19 MPH Over Prima Facia Limit
Maintenance & Operation of Wildlife Proof…
Failed to Obey Traffic Control Device/Stop Sign
Failure to Appear
Disorderly Conduct
Trespassing Prohibited
Careless Driving
Wildlife Resistant Containers or Enclosures…
Speeding 1-5 over (0-4)
10 Most Common Citations Issued from 2021-2023
2023 2022 2021
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Figure 3 Disposed Court Cases from 2021-2023
Overwhelmingly, the majority of municipal court cases disposed during this time involved
only one ordinance citation. Only around 7 percent of cases involved two or more citations.
Table 1 provides a summary of all municipal court case dispositions from 2021-2023.
Around 78.4 percent of these cases resulted in a disposition of guilty, whether by a plea of
guilty or a finding of guilt by the Court. Guilty dispositions result in outcomes such as
probation, a sentence to jail time, and fines paid. About 4.3 percent of cases disposed from
2021-2023 were dismissed in which there was no finding of guilt or conviction. These cases
were dismissed for various reasons, including dismissal because the defendant was either
subject to a mental health hold or deemed incompetent by the state court, trials were set
but witnesses failed to appear or refused to testify, and cases involving defendants who
had pending state court charges and were sentenced to long jail sentences or prison.
Table 1. Municipal Court Case Dispositions (2021-2023)
Case Dispositions 2021 2022 2023 Total
Guilty 235 213 191 639
Not Guilty 1 0 4 5
Dismissed by a Police Officer 9 7 31 47
Dismissed Pursuant to a Plea Agreement or Completion of Traffic
School 22 33 28 83
Dismissed 2 15 18 35
Deferred 2 0 4 6
Total 271 268 276 815
271 268 276
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
2021 2022 2023
Municipal Court Cases (2021-2023)
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10 percent of cases disposed in the last three years were dismissed pursuant to a plea
agreement or the completion of traffic school. It has long been a policy of the municipal
court to allow minor traffic violators who have a clean driving record for at least five
preceding years to elect to enter an agreement whereby if the violator completes traffic
school, the ticket is dismissed; this practice is common across the State.This category also
includes cases that were dismissed pursuant to the completion of conditions surrounding
a plea agreement being met. For example, of the cases dismissed pursuant to a plea
agreement or the completion of traffic school, around 40 percent of these cases were
dismissed in response to a completed deferred judgment and sentence or other plea
arrangement. A deferred judgment and sentence is a sentencing option utilized regularly
in both municipal and state courts. In these types of cases, a defendant pleads guilty, and
sentencing is deferred for a period of time. During that time, the defendant must comply
with certain conditions, including payment of a fine, no new offenses, community service,
or other terms. Only if these terms are complete can the defendant withdraw the plea of
guilty, and at that time, the case is dismissed.
In discussing municipal court case findings, it is important to note that city staff are
considering municipal code updates as an avenue to increase the judicial mechanisms
that the municipal court has at its disposal.
NEXT STEPS:
ATTACHMENTS:
CITY MANAGER NOTES:
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