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Resources - The Recorder

The Recorder is the periodic journal published by the Texas Municipal Courts Education Center as a critical news and information source for municipal courts in Texas.   Subscriptions are free to every municipal court in Texas, and we encourage constituents to subscribe for future Recorders electronically by contacting Shane Scribner, Subject: Request to Receive The Recorder Electronically.  Others may purchase an annual subscription for $50.00.

Archived copies of the Recorder are available online for download, and may be searched for along with the rest of the TMCEC website using the search engine at the top right corner of your screen.

 

June 2008

- Sorting Out the Anomaly: Non-Appearance Crimes in Light of Azeez v. State
- Denying Bail in Family Violence Offenders

- Mysterious Hearing Powers: The Municipal Judge as Presiding Officer at Driver's License Suspension Hearings

-
Driving on the Right Side of the Road
- Distracted Driving

  
May 2008

- The Role of the Municipal Court in City Government
- City Officials, Here are Six Ways to Drive Your Municipal Judge Crazy

- Armed But Not Dangerous: Obtaining a Concealed Handgun License

- Traffic Safety Awards

- By Hook or Crook: I Maintain that Everything is Fine

- The Interpretation Hub: A Solution for Larger Courts

- Practical Suggestions for Visiting Classrooms

- Driving on the Right Side of the Road

- OCA Annual Report

- Costs of a DWI Arrest

- Impaired Driving Laws in Texas

- Examples of Improper Judicial Conduct

 
December 2007

- Case Law And Attorney General Opinion
- The Important Role of Municipal Judges in Child Passenger Safety
- TMCA Names 2007 Judge and Clerk of the Year
- 2008 Texas State Warrant Roundup
- Traffic Safety Can Go Far Beyond the Traffic Stop
- Traffic Safety Initiatives: Traffic Safety Award
 

 
Summer 2007

- Driving Across the Border: Mexico DLs and Financial Responsibility   
- Domestic Violence: Firearm Admonishments in Misdemeanor Convictions
- General Counsel's Column: Coming to Terms with the 80th Session
- Hate Crime Conundrum: Are They Going Unprosecuted?
- Collections Corner: OmniBase and Failure to Appear
- In Appreciation
- Celebrate Municipal Court Week: November 5-9, 2007
- No More Best Practices
- TMCEC 2006-2007 Program Evaluations

 

Legislative Update 2007

- Legislative Update 2007 with full-text bill summaries

 
May 2007

- Legal Basis For Legislative Continuances
- Citations, Part II
- Born to be a Collector
- Clerks' Corner: Who Can Accept Payments from Defendants?
- Child Support Magistration: Do Municipal Court Judges Have Authority to Magistrate Child Support Offenders?
- General Counsel's Column: The Death of Local Courts Costs: Are the Juvenile Case Manager, Court Security, and Technology Funds in Peril?
- 75 Percent of Young Texans Affected by Dating Violence

 

March 2007

- Bail Bonds for All, Reprise
- Citations - Part I
- Examples of Improper Judicial Conduct
- The Efficient Disposition of DWI Cases: Best Practices
- Clerks' Corner: The Winds of Change
- Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibility for Court Interpreters
- Assessing Threats in Our Courts
- Public Safety Training and Red Light Camera Enforcement
- Costs and Benefits of Improving Traffic Safety in Your Community

 
December 2006

- Case Law Update
- Statewide Warrant Roundup Planned for March 2007
- Starting a Marshal's Office
- State Bar Provides Criticism "Hotline"
- 2006 TMCA Judge and Clerk of the Year Announced
- MCLE Fees
- How to Read a Legal Citation
- ReportMyTeen.com
- Traffic Safety Tips 2006
- Truck Crash Facts & Survivors Guide
- Program Evaluations 2006

 


Summer 2006 

- "Buckle Up in Your Truck": Fact Sheet and Talking Points
- Clerk's Corner FAQ
- Faculty Appreciation
- Driver Responsibility Program & Moving Violation List
- Legal Advice and Legal Information: A Clerk's Dilemma
- What Are Crimes of Moral Turpitude?

 
August 2006

- Contemplating Contempt Power
- The Ethics of CDL Masking
- Clerks' Corner: Use of Credit Cards, Handling Hot Checks
- Ethics Opinions 291 and 292
- Untangling the Court Technology Web
- About the 80 mph Speed Limit

 

July 2006

- Should Your Municipal Court Become a Court of Record
- Certification Incentives around the State
- Municipal Court Clerks Certification Program: Improving the Local Administration of Justice
- Collection Improvement Program: "The Future of Court Collections"
- General Counsel's Column: Dismissals & Instanter Arrests
- Seven Dollars that Add Up: An Inside Look at the Municipal Court Building Security and Technology Funds
- Electronically Created Records
- Enforcing Municipal Ordinances in the Extraterritorial Jurisdiction
- Magistrate's Duty to Order the Installation of Ignition Interlock Devices
- Traffic Safety Note

 
May 2006

- News on Traffic Safety in Texas
- Ethics Update: Public Statement No. PS-2006-1
- Change to Rules of Judicial Education
- General Counsel's Column: Read Any Good AG Opinions Recently?
- Caseflow Management in Texas Municipal Courts
- Bulk Requests: The “Ticket Stop” Example
- Apathy in Our Courts, Death on Our Roads
- Click It or Ticket

 
December 2005

- Texas Magistrates: Gatekeepers to Indigent Defense
- TMCA Recognizes Oustanding Judge & Clerk of 2005
- Change in DSC Certificates
- New Collection Law: Problem or Opportunity?
- Case Law Update & Attorney General Opinion Update

 
August 2005
- Legislative Update 2005 - with full text bill summaries
 
June 2005

- Recent Ethics Opinions
- Contemporary Prosecutorial Ethical Dilemmas
- Setting Up a Collection Program
- The Fair Defense Act: Whose Job Is It Anyway? Part 2
- Clerks' Corner FAQ  

 
April/May 2005

- Teen Court and the Aftermath
- Amarillo Municipal Court: A Look at Collections, Compliance and Impact
- The Fair Defense Act: Whose Job Is It Anyway? Part 1
- Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol and Driver’s License Suspension
- Farmers Branch Municipal Court: A Great Place to Work!
- Dispelling Confusion: Requests for Records Pertaining to Juveniles  

 
March 2005
- Military Service and Municipal Courts
- But I Already Paid My Fine! DPS Points & Surcharges
- Regional Databases: Not Just a Warrant List
- Clerks' Corner: DL Suspensions
 

December 2004

- Municipal Courts Enhance Their Technological Services
- Recent Ethics Opinions
- General Counsel's Column: Designated Funds & Pretrial Distraction
- The Collections Process: How to Handle Delinquencies
- Clerks’ Role in Judgments and Capias Pro Fines
- Magistrate’s Authority to Issue Search
- Case Law Update 

 
October 2004

- FAQs from the 800 Line
- General Counsel's Column: Juvenile Confessions
- TMCA Recognizes Clerk and Judge of the Year
- Tips and Tricks for Personal Computing
- Appeals from Municipal Court Judgments
- Financial Evaluation and the Defendant Interview
- Program Evaluations 2004 

 
July 2004

- CaseMail - Yet another Way Email Makes Life Easier
- Establishing the Identity of Foreign Nationals
- Magistrates, Jurisdiction and Open Courts
- Complaints, Complaints, Complaints: Don’t Let the Language of the
- Law Confuse You
- The Fine Collections System
- The Clerk’s Role in Preparing Complaints
- Spanish for Bailiffs

 
May 2004

- Handling Requests for Court Records
- Appeals – Myths and Facts
- Top 10 Things for Bailiffs to Do During Trial Other than Catching Up on Sleep
- Collections Tool: Skip Tracing
- General Counsel's Column: Jail Credit and Community Service
- Writ of Procedendo: Enforcing Judgments Post-Appeal
- Judgments Post Appeal
- Recent Ethics Opinions
- Judges: Putting Technology to Work for You

 
March 2004

- Administrative Adjudication of Parking and Stopping Offenses
- Focus on ... Bail Bond Forfeiture
- Court Budget Planning during Lean Time
- Collections Tool: The Telephone
- General Counsel's Column: Article 15.18 Out-of-County Pleas
- Interlocal Agreements for Jail Service; Don’t Get Locked into a Bad Contract
- Serving the Community while Avoiding Getting Served
- Prisoner Transportation

 
January 2004

- Amnesty 2004
- Case Law & Attorney General Opinion Update
- Read and Discuss the Canons
- Examples of Improper Judicial Conduct
- General Counsel's Column: Demeanor, Diligence, & Competence
- Caseload Trends in the Municipal Courts 2003
- Municipal Court Building Security Fund Revisisted

 
December 2003

- Two Wrongs Didn’t Make It Right, Private Collections
- Courtroom Security – A Matter of Communication
- Language Interpreters in Court
- General Counsel's Column: Special Session, Collections, & Youth
- TMCA Names Outstanding Judge & Clerk of the Year

 
November 2003

- Legislative Issues
- Rules of the Road Offense Chart

 
August 2003

- 2003 Legislative Update - with full bill text summaries

 
July 2003

- Gender Bias in Court
- Family Violence Policy Good for Workplace
- Magistrate’s Order for Emergency Protection Issue
- Domestic and Family Violence: Vicarious Trauma and Judges
- Recent CCA Opinion: Lidar or Radar
- General Counsel's Column: Constitutional & Statutory Victims’ Rights

 
May 2003

- Clerk's Corner: Counting Time
- The Future of Court Security
- Broadening the Pool: Representative Jury Pools
- Mediation Referrals and Orders from Municipal Courts
- Writing an Effective E-mail Policy
- General Counsel's Column: The Role of the Prosecutor
- An Overview of Collections Programs
- Waiver of Right to Appeal in Local Trial Courts of Limited Jurisdiction

 
March 2003

- Appeals from Non-Record vs. Record Municipal Courts
- General Counsel's Column: Vienna Convention, Seat Belt Fines & Fines and Special Expense Fees in Deferred Disposition
- Insights into Diversity
- E-mail—To Delete or Not To Delete
- Foreign National Procedures
- How a Court Becomes a Court of Record
- Legal Q & A: Removal from Office
- Pay or Lay: Tate v. Short Revisited
- Warrant Officer/Marshal: Benefits vs. Cost

 

February 2003

- Attorney General Opinions Update
- New Year's Computer Cleaning
- General Counsel's Column: Crimes Committed in Municipal Courts
- Court Cost Exercise
- Juveniles Now Adults
- Questioned Court Documents: Decreasing the Use of False Identities
- Designing a Court Security Plan
- Advancements in Court Technology

 

December 2002

-Court Security
- Motions in Limine: A Judge’s Perspective
- Using Videoconferencing for 15.17 Hearings
- General Counsel's Column: Pretrial Hearings and Conferences, and CDLs
- Sending the Message with Amnesty Programs and Warrant Round-ups
- Case Law and Attorney General Update
- TMCA Recognizes Outstanding Judge & Clerk of the Year

 
Summer 2002- Court Decorum Special Issue 
 
August 2002
- Diversity Special Issue 
 

 July 2002

- Vehicle Modifications
- What Is a Psychosocial Assessment?
- Moving Toward Paperless Courts
- Mayors, Magistrates, and Judges; Whose Job Is It?
- Deferred Disposition: Thinking Outside of the Box vs. Abuse of Discretion
- General Counsel's ColumnRecent Actions by the Commission on Judicial Conduct  

 

 May 2002

- Racial Profiling and Pretext Stops
- Public Perception, Road Rage and the Role of the Court
- Are You Getting the Most from Your Prosecutor?
- “Well, Officer ... About That Driver’s License”
- Traffic Technology

 

 March 2002

- The Bottom Line on Juvenile Contempt
- Local Court Costs
- General Counsel's Column: In-Court Judicial Misconduct & Victim Impact Panels
- Enhancements in Municipal Court
- Ethics Update
- Hate Crimes: Prosecute in Municipal Court?
- Justice Information Systems
- Graduated Driver’s License

 

 February 2002

- Attorney General Opinions and Open Records Decisions
- Constitutional Amendment Changes
- Destination of "Anti-bribery”Affidavit
- Indigent Defense Bill
- Sexual Harassment
- Court of Criminal Appeals: Rules of Judicial Education
- Ethics Advisory Opinions
- Launching Your Court onto the Web  

 

 December 2001

- Federal and State Case Law Update
- Testifying on Juvenile Magistration
- Collect on Those Warrants
- Rules & Deadlines for Court Interpreters
- General Counsel's Column: Out-of-County Magistration & Round Ups
- An Introduction to Court Technology

 

 September 2001

- Jail Credit: Attorney General Opinion
- First Clerk Achieves Full Certification
- Seven Habits of Highly Effective Judges
- Community Court Approach to Repeat Offenders

 
 August 2001
- Legislative Update 2001 with full bill text summaries 
 
 July 2001
- Legislative Update: Early Edition
  

 May 2001

- Innovations in Juvenile Procedure
- Lago Vista Prevails
- OCA Annual Report
- Common Juvenile Disorders
- Keys to Successful Community Service
- Tobacco Community Service
- Texas Teen Courts
- Juvenile Age
- Case Law Update

 

 March 2001

- Magistrations: Remote Video and Bond Conditions
- Ethics Advisory Opinions
- Improper Judicial Conduct
- Records Retention Program

 

 August 2000

- Magistration Under Article 15.17, C.C.P
- Election and Jury Punishment in Municipal Courts
- Prejudgment Jail Credit
- Rule 12 and Access to Court Records

 

 July 2000

- Unauthorized Practice of Law and Pro Se Practice
- Custody of Juveniles and Taking Statements
- Funds for Juvenile Programs
- School Violence and Its Impact on the Courts
- Tobacco Awareness and Community Service

 

 June 2000

- Case Law Update
- Frequently Asked Questions

 

 April 2000

- Attorney General Opinion Updates
- Clerks' Certification Program Surveyed

 

 February 2000

- Knowingly Removing Knowingly From Your Complaints
- DPS Honoring Community Service Suspensions
- Ethics Update

 

Article Submission 

Members of our constituency are encouraged to submit articles on effective municipal court procedures and practices, pertinent issues involving municipal courts, or letters that raise noted concerns experienced by our readership.  Please submit articles and letters to:

Texas Municipal Courts Education Center
1609 Shoal Creek Blvd., Suite 302,
Austin, Texas  78701
Or at tmcec@tmcec.com, Subject: Submission to The Recorder 

The Recorder follows the new style manual: ALWD Citation Manual: A Professional System of Citation.  Copies may be obtained by calling Aspen Publishers at 800/638-8437 or at www.aspenpublishers.com. The ALWD manual was selected over other citation manuals for its clarity, brevity, and the resultant ease with which our readers will be able to effectively locate cited sources within this work.