Traffic court established for county violations
Originally published: June 02. 2003 3:01AMLast modified: June 02. 2003 12:00AM
From Staff reports
A new traffic division has been opened at the Blount County General Sessions Clerk"s Office.
The new division was created to accommodate the newly passed county ordinances and all Class C misdemeanor traffic laws, Circuit Court Clerk Tom Hatcher said.
The Blount County Commission passed Resolution 02-02-004 on April 8, 2002, and amended the same by Resolution 02-05-011 on May 16, 2002, both pertaining to traffic regulations and other non-traffic regulations.
This project has been in the works for over a year and is now ready to be put into operation today, Hatcher said in a press release Friday.
However, citations will only be issued outside the city limits of Alcoa, Maryville and Townsend, the release said.
The Blount County Sheriff's Office will start citing violators with county ordinances that the Blount County Commission passed into law.
The traffic division has been designed to better serve the public and to lower the docket back log for the General Sessions judges and law enforcement agencies, Hatcher said.
According to Hatcher, the traffic division will be responsible for the process of all minor traffic violations and all county ordinances. Such violations will include speeding, registration law, no proof of insurance and equipment violations. The traffic division will handle all citations written by the Blount County Sheriff's Office, Tennessee Highway Patrol and the Commercial Vehicle Enforcement, he said.
If a county ordinance violation is written, all proceeds received from the violation will stay in Blount County, Hatcher said.
The proceeds will be turned into the county general fund, which should help raise additional revenue, which in turn help hold down tax increases for better services, Hatcher said.
The move is a cooperative effort between Blount County Sheriff James Berrong, General Sessions Court Judge Hugh E. Delozier and William R. Brewer, Hatcher, Barbara Davis, Blount County Sheriff's Office Patrol Capt. James Long and Hatcher.
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