The chief justice of Missouri's Supreme Court urged lawmakers on Wednesday to continue to support court employees in the state’s 46 judicial circuits.
“From the front lines, our local court staff experience firsthand how their everyday work impacts the people in their communities,” Mary Russell told the state House and Senate during her State of the Judiciary speech Wednesday. “Most of the work that we do does not generate headlines or go viral on social media, but the ordinary duties create extraordinary results for citizens across our state.”
The speech took lawmakers through a regular day in courthouses across the state, where 3,400 employees handle everything from adoptions to felony trials to wills.
Russell has spent her second term as chief justice – a position that rotates among the Supreme Court’s seven judges – traveling to the state’s 46 judicial circuits. So far, she said, she’s been to 36.
“These tours have shown us that investing in our courts is an investment in our local citizens,” she said.
Russell had a few specific requests for lawmakers. While the state court system has mostly recovered from an electrical problem that knocked its servers offline last summer, more funding is needed to get them back to full functionality and prevent future problems.
In addition, Russell said she hoped lawmakers would boost the mileage reimbursement rate for jurors, who currently receive 7 cents per mile. Russell asked for it to match the state employee rate of about 66 cents.
“Doing so will demonstrate respect for our jurors,” Russell said.
The chief justice added that she was “grateful for the opportunity” to work with lawmakers to add beds at two juvenile detention centers in central Missouri, “while increasing our security and mental health services and maintaining juvenile detention staff throughout our state.”
