Town of Barker – Justice Court Operations (2016M-422)

Issued Date
November 20, 2017

Purpose of Audit

The purpose of our audit was to examine the Court’s financial operations for the period January 1, 2015 through September 19, 2016.

Background

The Town of Barker is located in Broome County and has a population of approximately 3,000. The Town, which is governed by an elected five-member Town Board, has a Justice Court with one elected Justice. In 2015, the Court reported revenues totaling approximately $75,000.

Key Findings

  • Not all case files included documentation of the Justice's adjudication, indicating the case resolution and the amount of fines and surcharges the Court may have collected.
  • Both the Justice and the clerk have the ability to modify or delete adjudication information in the Court's computers without the original data being documented in the case files.

Key Recommendations

  • Verify that all case files include documentation of the adjudication and the amount of any fines and surcharges collected.
  • Prevent unauthorized changes to the adjudications by electronically signing the case files.