Which statement about authority in the municipal court is true?

Which statement about authority in the municipal court is true?

• A. Only a judge may issue a summons for a defendant.
• B. Municipal court clerks have the authority to issue a capias.
• C. When a judge is not available, the clerk may grant deferred disposition or teen court.
• D. Judges can permit clerks to perform judicial duties and then later adopt the actions of the clerk.

Answer: (A)

Issuing a summons is a judicial act in municipal court. A defendant’s obligation to appear is created by a court order, and that order must originate from a judge (or be issued under the judge’s authority). Clerks handle administrative tasks and may prepare documents or carry out ministerial duties under guidance, but they do not independently issue a summons. That’s why the statement that only a judge may issue a summons is true. The other ideas stray from how authority is properly exercised. Capiases, while related to court orders, require judicial action and aren’t issued unilaterally by a clerk. Deferred disposition and teen court decisions likewise require judicial oversight or specific court programs, not a clerk acting alone in a judge’s absence. And allowing a judge to delegate judicial duties to clerks with the judge later adopting the clerk’s actions would blur the line between administrative tasks and judicial decision-making, which isn’t how authority operates in municipal court.

Issuing a summons is a judicial act in municipal court. A defendant’s obligation to appear is created by a court order, and that order must originate from a judge (or be issued under the judge’s authority). Clerks handle administrative tasks and may prepare documents or carry out ministerial duties under guidance, but they do not independently issue a summons. That’s why the statement that only a judge may issue a summons is true.

The other ideas stray from how authority is properly exercised. Capiases, while related to court orders, require judicial action and aren’t issued unilaterally by a clerk. Deferred disposition and teen court decisions likewise require judicial oversight or specific court programs, not a clerk acting alone in a judge’s absence. And allowing a judge to delegate judicial duties to clerks with the judge later adopting the clerk’s actions would blur the line between administrative tasks and judicial decision-making, which isn’t how authority operates in municipal court.