CC Minutes - 05/13/98 Work Session

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ordinances. Judge Allen said that those cases would have the most impact on defense and prosecution services rather than the court. It was typical that the defense and prosecution resolved the case outside of court. Judge Allen said that the court did not have many contentious trials. He added that such cases would also have some lesser impact on staff. Judge Allen emphasized that the court was ill-equipped to deal with cases such as sex abuse, as it lacked a system to ensure follow-through with the family and the offender. The court had no probation officer, evaluative program, or treatment to offer offenders. He speculated that the court might be able to accept some more minor offenses from the District Attorney's Office on the basis that the District Court retained those cases the court was not prepared to address. Mr. Torrey asked if cases involving parental control, such as in the failure of a parent to exercise the proper control over a juvenile, were heard by Municipal Court. Judge Allen said that the City would have to adopt the existing State law for the court to hear such cases. He noted that Springfield had adopted the State criminal code. City Attorney Glenn Klein confirmed for Mr. Torrey that the City of Eugene had not adopted the State criminal code. Responding to a question from Mr. Torrey, Judge Allen said truancy cases were not heard in Municipal Court but were referred to the Justice Court in Springfield. He believed those cases were referred to that venue because it was a County court. Mr. Torrey said that the council would take no action on the evaluation until its June 3 meeting. B. Work Session: Ordinances Related to the Downtown Mall Jan Bohman, Office of the City Manager, noted that staff had consulted with Judge Allen and Ms. Nelson in the preparation of procedures for an appeal process. They had also discussed the impacts of the ordinances on the court with staff. Ms. Bohman provided the council with the background on the development of the ordinances. She emphasized that staff was not offering the ordinances as a comprehensive solution to issues on the mall, but envisioned them as part of a multi-faceted approach that also included the summer youth program. Ms. Bohman provided an overview of the proposed ordinances. She noted that similar City ordinances governed other City facilities, such as parks, community and senior centers, and library, and recreation facilities. Ms. Bohman reported that the Council Committee on Public Safety discussed the proposed ordinances, suggested some revisions, and forwarded the ordinances to the full council without a recommendation as members wished to hear the comments of other councilors. Ms. Bohman briefly reviewed the revisions suggested by the council committee. Ms. Bohman highlighted the potential of a legal challenge to the ordinances that could involve legal costs. Officer Scott Fellman, Eugene Police Department, identified himself as the foot patrol officer for downtown. He described examples of incidents that occurred on the mall during the week of MINUTES--Eugene City Council May 13, 1998 Page 4 11:30 a.m.