The Peru Gazette

By John T. Ryan

On August 25^th, the Peru Town Board, citing employee and public concern with court proceedings being held in the midst of the Town Hall, voted to move the time Peru Town Court convenes from 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. for a two-month trial period. At the Board’s October 9^th meeting, Supervisor Peter Glushko informed the Board that he had received a letter from Jerome J. Richards, Supervising Judge of the 4^th Judicial District, advising the Town of Peru that it does not have the authority to set town court hours. Judge Richards wrote the letter in a response to an inquiry from Peru Town Justice James Kirby. Supervisor Glushko responded stating the Town Board still has the authority to allocate space for court proceedings and that space would not be available until the Town Hall is closed for public business at 3 p.m.

At that point Board members began discussing the possibility of moving court proceedings to the Town Hall’s basement level where the JCEO Food Shelf and Town Historian currently conduct business. Counselors Donald McBrayer and Brandy McDonald were enthusiastic about the change both saying, “I think that’s a good idea.” McBrayer, who serves as the Board’s liaison to Town Court added, “I believe every office is starting to bulge at the seams so reallocating space might not just help the court but every office in this building. I’d like to see if downstairs could meet the court’s requirements.” All the counselors expressed agreement and Supervisor Glushko set a goal of getting the move accomplished before Christmas.

Subsequent to the Town Board meeting The Peru Gazette interviewed Supervisor Glushko and Judge Kirby in their respective offices. Glushko said that since the October 9^th meeting he had changed his mind on moving court offices stating, “Court proceedings will be downstairs and court offices will remain upstairs. We’d be relocating too many people for the sake of one hour’s court time.”

Judge James Kirby was enthusiastic about moving downstairs but stated that court offices would also have to be moved. Kirby or his clerk often retrieves documents or information during a court proceeding.

Kirby held fast to his contention that the court should convene at 2 p.m. He stated, “2 p.m. works best for both the sheriff’s department and the attorneys. If court convened at 3:30 p.m. we’d be here until 4:30 p.m. or 5 p.m. waiting for lawyers who represent clients in the Town of Plattsburgh Court. I could be here until 8 p.m. or 9 p.m. The sheriff’s department shift change starts at 3 p.m. When we convene at 2 p.m. they can get here and back to the jail by 3 p.m. Then they can get to the Town of Plattsburgh for 4 p.m.”

On Tuesday, October 22, Clinton County Sheriff David Favro told The Peru Gazette that the jail’s shift change takes place at 2:30 p.m. when all inmates are locked in their cells for a head count. Asked about the time that Peru Town Court convenes Favro responded, “I don’t see our department’s shift change as being a deciding factor. We can accommodate whatever is needed. This is more about safety and procedural issues.”

Favro is enthusiastic about the prospect of Peru moving its court proceedings downstairs after having toured the Town Hall last week at the request of the Town Board. He stated, “It makes good sense. There are many dynamics in a courtroom setting. I think having its own space is more conducive to court proceedings.” Discussing the basement’s layout he said, “Inmates could come down the back ramp and into the small room (currently a small kitchen) that could be made into an inmate holding room. It would work better especially when we have a hostile inmate.”

Favro said conducting court in the midst of the Town Hall offices is far from ideal noting the unavoidable interaction with the general public and the presence of glass enclosures immediately adjacent to the Town Hall entrance. Glass located in close proximity to a hostile inmate is not a safe environment for anyone concerned.