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Judge also tells Government Study Commission public has low opinion of courts.
KINGSTON – Court of Common Pleas President Judge Chester Muroski told the Luzerne County Government Study Commission Wednesday that the county court system is suffering in the public opinion arena.
At the commission’s weekly information-gathering meeting in its trek to determine whether the county should adopt a new charter, Muroski said he and the other rank-and-file judges understand they have “a lot to live down.”
The judges are “trying to rehabilitate our image to our community, and they deserve that,” he said.
He did not delve into any specific topics but said he feels like “the captain of the Titanic that’s still floating after hitting the iceberg,” he said. “It was out of control.”
Asked by commission member Christopher Kersey what a new charter would require, Muroski singled out limiting “public question.”
“You can’t let every nickel-and-dime decision go to public question,” he said. “You’ll go crazy,” he said, adding, “That’s no way to run a county.”
He recommended specific definitions of what types of decisions require public involvement in order to avoid going to ballots chaotically. The county should be a “representative democracy,” where elected official are entrusted with decision-making authority, he said.
He also gave several examples of redundancy of services that could be combined to improve efficiency. One of them is the existence of a prothonotary’s clerk who handles civil cases and a clerk of courts who handles criminal cases. Those two positions can be combined, he said.
Sometimes judges have to wait to find the right clerk, he said.
He also pointed to positions that can be eliminated, such as the jury commissioner, which he called “useless.”
Some positions are untouchable, such as the sheriff or state-mandated lawyers, he said. But he did recommend the commission take a close look at the row officers and their departments for further cuts.
When asked by commission Chairman Jim Haggerty about controlling costs and trimming his own budget, Muroski said his department is operating conservatively. He emphasized how the courts reduced costs by about $2.8 million per year, much of it through attrition of about 12 employees and cutting of 27 others.
He said the county commissioners tend to resist any budget increase requests he makes. However, he often has to bring in new lawyers mandated by state laws.
Commission Secretary Charmaine Maynard asked for suggestions on how best to control staffing in all departments.
Muroski said a “precise method” for staffing needs to be developed with stringent controls on department funding to avoid overstaffing like what has happened in the county during the last 30 years.