The court has three judges, four part-time
magistrates and a support staff of over 50 full and part-time employees. It is comprised
of four divisions: Civil, Criminal, Traffic, and Probation.
The current judges of the 52nd
District Court, 1st Division are the Honorable Robert Bondy, Honorable Travis Reeds, and the Honorable David Law.
52-1 is separated into 4 primary divisions including:
- Traffic Division deals with citations written by police departments.
- Civil Division handles cases that involve money or damage claims, and landlord/tenant disputes.
- Criminal Division processes
paperwork from police departments, state law and ordinance prosecutors.
Cases involve misdemeanor offenses, both traffic and non-traffic.
- Probation
Department conducts pre-sentence investigations, alcohol assessments, probation supervision, and probation violation hearings.
The District Court, which was established by the Michigan Legislature in 1968 pursuant to constitutional mandate,
has
more citizen contact than any other court in our judicial system.
The District Court has
exclusive jurisdiction of civil matters involving claims
not exceeding $25,000 in the following areas:
- Controversy
- Landlord/tenant eviction proceedings
- Land contract forfeitures
- Garnishments and executions, and other related proceedings
District Court also hears cases
assigned by the Circuit Court on civil matters where claims
exceed $25,000.
The District Court has the exclusive jurisdiction over all criminal matters where the maximum penalty
does not exceed one year in jail. It also conducts preliminary examinations in all felony cases where
penalty exceeds one year confinement. The preliminary exam is conducted to determine whether or not the prosecution has sufficient evidence to show the probability the defendant committed the crime charged. If the District Judge decides there is probable cause, the matter is sent to Circuit Court for trial.
The District Court also has the responsibility for all traffic violations involving civil infractions and misdemeanors such as speeding, reckless driving and operating while intoxicated.
Geographic Jurisdiction
The
1st Division of the 52nd District Court, located in Novi, serves approximately 175,000 population in the following communities: