Don’t get Arrested. I WILL Know! By: ChyTearra Kintchen

Don’t get Arrested. I WILL Know!

What type of shows are you into?  Do you like Snapped?  What about Police Women of Maricopa County?  Or do you simply like to kickback after work and watch the 5 o’clock news?  Whatever you choose, that is my job every single day.  

So, what is it that I do?  I thought you would never ask!  My position is called a Magistrate Prep Clerk.  According to dictionary.com, magistrate court is “a court having limited jurisdiction over minor civil and criminal matters, as matters of contract not exceeding a particular amount of money”.  Simply put, magistrate is a court hearing you attend within the first 24 hours of your arrest in order to hear/receive a bond,  which is sometimes denied depending on the charge.  It is not a trial; it is not the time for you to talk about your charges or give your side of the story.  The hearing is only to make you aware of the charges and your bond.

The Process

Rain, sleet, snow, hurricanes, holidays, weekends, (I think you get the picture), magistrate court is held every single day, twice daily.  A team member of mine who gets the ball rolling is up at 2:15am getting paperwork from the jail.  The stack of paperwork is huge about 90% of the time; upwards of 100 defendants on the docket every day.  That paperwork is sorted into categories, by gender and type of charge.  It also must be separated from originals, which go to the clerk, and the copies, which the state attorney gets.

While that person is separating paperwork, I’m finally rolling out of bed with the help of my 2:45am alarm.  All the paperwork my team member separated then comes to me.  I am responsible for setting court dates for those who have warrants, violations of probation or community control, capias, etc.  I also make sure case numbers, judges, and name spelling is correct.  I see everything, everyone, way before the general public can get their hands on it, before the actual judge see it!  So don’t get arrested! I will know!  

The last member of the team is the clerk.  That is the person who sits in the actual court proceeding, fills out the docket, does orders, and so much more.  That person is the official record keeper of what happened in magistrate court on that day with that judge, and the other members that are in court.  The clerk comes in at 6:30am to prep the magistrate docket, prep orders, find new case numbers, and other miscellaneous things that will make being in court run a little smoother.

Organization

Without the three members that work together to make magistrate run successfully, there would be no criminal court.  It is the very beginning of everything.  No matter if it is something as small as a driving license suspended charge, capital murder, everyone is entitled to a bond hearing.  

All members of the team work closely with pre-trial, state attorneys, the public defenders, and of course, the magistrate judge.  We sacrifice sleep, we sacrifice our weekends, and quite frankly, our lives.  While the world was shut-down dealing with COVID-19 concerns, court still had to go on.  While the area is dealing with natural disasters, we still must leave our families, go out at ridiculous times of the morning, praying to make it to work safe and on time.  Our sacrifices and teamwork keep the courthouse criminal system running continuously.  

I love my job.  I have been at it for eight years now.  I have seen a lot; I know a lot.  But the best part of the job is, I KNOW IF YOU GOT ARRESTED!