The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1899-05-04
NO MORE FEES
Finance Board Establishes
Fixed Salaries for Police
Justices and Clerks.
FOLLOWING NEHARK's PRECEDENT
Commissioners Mullins Reso-
ution-Justices Potts and
Nevin Satisfied.
FOLLOWING NEHARK'S PRECEDENT

The Board of Finance yesterday after
noon decided to put the Police Justices
| on an annual salary and abolish the fees.
| The resolution was offered by Commits
| sioner John Mullins n it was as fol-
lows
Resolved, Thai the annual salary of
this date date be 500 500, and that the annual
salary of the clerk of the Police Justices
| courts Shall on and after this date be
8, 500 to be paid monthly in n the 1S,s same eI9s
are now paid; and be it further
Resolved, That all fees now by law
payable to said judges and clerks shall be
twenty-four hours after the same are re-
ceived, for the use of the city in pur-
| suance of an act entitled "A supplement
to an act entitled An P aef 70 proyIa cs f9 ip
cities of the first class. passed May u,
| 1894" approved March %, 1898, and thai
hereafter the judges and clerks Of u
j~courts shall not be paid any fees or COM
pensation other b a the salaries herein
provided for
Hitherto the Police Justices have been
Operating under Chapter IS of the laws
| of 1896, which provided for the jurisdiction
| and powers of the criminal courts and
! gave them authority besides trying cases
| VI ASSAULT. SIMPLE assault dlQ dtlCly "
collect fees. That part of the statute
having reference to the fees reads as fol-
| lows:-
"And be it enacted, That there shall be
paid monthly by the city in which such
court is established the following fees
To the judge of the court, a fee of three
dollars for trying each cause under the
| provisions of this act; to the clerk, a
fee of two dollars on each cause, which
fees shall constitute, together with the
fees of the witnesses on the part of the
State the costs of the trial.
Commissioners Mullins, after offering the
! foregoing resolution, which was unanim-
ously carried, moved that the Finance
Committee of the Board shall at once
examine the accounts, books, files n re-
cords of the Police and District Courts
and the books of the City Board of
Health to ascertain what amounts in fees
| have been paid to me City treasurer or
| what amounts still remain unpaid.
My object in offering this resolution"
| said Mr.. Mullins, lis that it seems to me
strictly business methods should govern
in all the departments of the city where
money IS received from the people for
the city treasury. l am casting no re-
iections on anybody or Official. and |
want that clearly understood. All l wish
is to have the city's accounts Kept up to
date, just as any private business con-
Germ does"
The change thus Instituted by the FL
nance Board was made In the CITY OF
Newark almost Immediately after the act
| was passed in 1885, and IL is said that
thai city has benefited materially by the
change, the Justices cheerfully accepting
the increased salary of $3.50 in lieu OF
a salary of $500 nj fees. Justices Potts
and Nevin, 1t Is understood, are perfectly
willing for the change. There will be no
difference, so far as they are concerned
in the trial of causes excepting that the
fees will go into the city's treasury
The action of the Board OF Finance
meets with the approval of Police Jus
tees Nevin and Potts. The law OF March,
1885, as passed by the Legislature gave
the Board of Finance the power to put
the judges and clerks on salary in Leu
of the fees. The law provides that the
that of the clerk, $3.50, and all fees
heretofore paid to the judges and clerks
will go to the city, the same, as the fines.
In Newark courts the fee system was
abolished as soon as the law was passed.
The fee system was unpopular, and the
did perfectly right in putting them on
salary.
The change, however, will make no
| differences in the incomes of the court
attaches as the fees never amounted to
more than the increase proposed by the
board.
Justice Potts in an interview win a
News" reporter, said 81 am perfectly
satisfied with the change as made by the
Board of Finance last night. It is
coming to a person than to have to
wait a year or two to get 1t. The
Judges will not have to take chances in
collecting their overdue fees under the
present system. Justice Nevin Is of the
same opinion as Justice Potts.