Bonney Lake Municipal Court – Bonney Lake, WA

Oct 28, 2021

A municipal court is a court with restrictive area of authority over criminal offenses and civil disputes inside its geographic area. These courts can be located at the city or county level.

Bonney Lake Municipal Court INformation

Court: Bonney Lake Municipal Court
Address: “Justice & Municipal Center 9002 Main Street E, Suite 100, Bonney Lake, WA 98391”
Phone: 253-862-6606

City: Bonney Lake
County: Pierce
State: Washington

What is the role of the Bonney Lake Municipal Court?

Municipal Courts are often called “courts of limited jurisdiction.” Which means that they handle minor crimes, civil matters, and traffic matters. Courthouses like Bonney Lake Municipal Court are the first level of court for this group of matters.

In other situations, the purpose of a county court is to deal with a large number of civil disputes within the respective region. Most cases involve divorce or other family matters, personal injury cases, more serious criminal charges, or contract disputes.

County courthouses have the jurisdiction to deal with misdemeanors and civil actions that can not exceed the amount of $15,000, while the circuits courts handle felony matters and larger civil matters.

TYPES OF Legal Matters seen IN A MUNICIPAL COURT in Bonney Lake, Washington

Municipal courts are the lowest level of courts in the U.S.. They are usually found within the jurisdiction where they are located, but some locales share municipal courts with other municipalities.

This can be done to better help their citizens or to save money on overhead costs. The cases that may be heard by a municipal court vary depending on the municipality, but typically include traffic matters, low level criminal charges and code violations.

There is no set definition for what constitutes a misdemeanor crime versus a felony crime, but generally speaking felonies would require more time in jail than misdemeanor crimes and fines may also be higher for felonies. Traffic violations usually result in points against your driver’s license as well

how are cases managed in the municipal court in Bonney Lake?

Municipal courts are the lowest level of the court system in the United States. They have jurisdiction over minor crimes, traffic crimes, and other civil matters. Municipal courts are often known as city courts or town courts. Cases are handled by a magistrate who is usually an attorney, judge, or retired judge. Magistrates may be appointed by the mayor or city council members to assist for a specific period of time.

Magistrates administer hearings to determine:

Probable cause for arrest
Set bail amounts and terms of release
Conduct arraignment hearings when charges are filed against defendants by police officers
Issue search warrants to law enforcement officers in order to protect evidence from crime locations
start preliminary inquiries to understand if there is enough evidence to issue a charge

The common process of a Municipal Court Case

The common path of a municipal court case can be tricky. The following is an overview of the steps involved in a regular municipal court case.

Step One: Issuance of Summons

A court summons is issued when an individual has been charged with violating a town rule or state law. The citizen who has received the summons from the court will need to appear at their assigned time and courthouse, which is usually the municipal courtroom, to respond for the charge(s) against them. If they never appear, they may be found guilty anyways and could be fined up to $1000 or sentenced to jail time if it’s a serious enough offense.

Second Step: Show Up before Judge or Magistrate

If someone fails to show up after being summoned by the judge, there may be a warrant issued for the individual.

Municipal Court Penalties in Bonney Lake, WA

Penalties change often, which is why it’s good to speak with licensed lawyer. The material below represents common penalties, but may not be accurate for the Bonney Lake Municipal Court.

A violation is a crime that carries a penalty of $500 or less, while a misdemeanor can have penalties up to $1,000.00 or one year in local jail. A person’s driving privileges may be suspended for six months if they receive three speeding tickets within 12 months.

The penalties for different offenses in municipal courthouses vary depending on the severity of an crimes. For example, if you are caught with marijuana without having a medical prescription for it then you could be fined up to $2,000 or spend up to six months in jail.

Bonney Lake Municipal Court Records

Municipal Court records from a municipal government could be difficult to find because they are not always stored in one location or system. The records that an individual might need to depend on the type of case they have in front of the court, where it’s at in the process, and what kind of of information is required by law to be present.

FAQs ABOUT the Bonney Lake Municipal Court

What is municipal court in Bonney Lake, Washington?

In Washington, the municipal court is a lower level with civil and criminal jurisdiction within a city or municipality. Municipal courts have a small location and have limited authority as well, dealing only with petty offenses and misdemeanor charges.

What does the municipal court handle in Bonney Lake, Washington?

Depending on the area of the municipality, a municipal court can handle a civil division (cases with less than $15,000 at issue), a traffic/criminal division, or a housing and environmental division. Serious cases/crimes are deal with by higher authorities.

How many judges does the Bonney Lake Municipal Court have?

The count of judges depends on the municipality’s size.

How are cases heard in municipal courts in Washington?

A municipal courthouse judge may be either elected or appointed to serve for a set duration or until retirement. Judges are sometimes chosen by the people with each precinct’s results evaluated according to population. Municipal magistrates are generally not lawyers but have some legal education and must complete many hours of ongoing education every period to maintain their credentials.