By Tim SchmidtRecord Managing EditorAn analysis of the Warrenton municipal court’s operations found that revenue spiked during a three-year period when additional police officers were employed, but has dropped substantially since that time.The report revealed that the court’s net income was similar when comparing the 2015 fiscal year to 2009, the last full year court sessions were handled by Warren County.The city held its first municipal court session in November 2009.The total amount of money Warrenton received in fines during the 2015 fiscal year ending in June was $353,678, a decrease of $15,580 from 2014. Between 2009 and 2015, revenue went as high as $598,751, the second of a three-year period when the police department had two extra police officers.Once expenses are subtracted, the city’s net income from operating its own municipal court was $222,484 in 2015, up from $198,902 in 2014, according to the report.In 2009, the last year the municipal court was operated by the county, the net income was $240,575. That figured jumped to $318,511 in 2010; $477,410 in 2011; $345,188 in 2012; $294,146 in 2013; $198,902 in 2014; and $222,484 in 2015.The number of tickets issued during that time frame followed a similar pattern.Warrenton police officers wrote 3,102 tickets in 2009, with the amount increasing to 4,675 in 2010; 4,808 in 2011; 3,732 in 2012; 3,439 in 2013; 2,507 in 2014; and 3,290 in 2015.The spike in revenue and tickets in 2010-2012 occurred at a time when the city had a grant covering the salaries of two officers for two years, with the new hires focusing on traffic enforcement, according to Director of Operations/Finance Officer Terri Thorn.The analysis of the municipal court covered the fiscal years between 2009 and 2015. It reviewed how much revenue from fines and court costs the city’s municipal court generated, the number of tickets issued, and operating expenses. The city’s expenses were determined by combining direct costs, such as employing a court clerk, judge, counsel and supplies, and indirect expenses, such as shifting personnel from their regular duties to being present when the monthly court sessions are held.The report was compiled following criticism from resident Dan Durbin who spoke at the Oct. 20 board of aldermen meeting. Durbin believed too many tickets are being written for a city the size of Warrenton.A review of the report led to strong remarks from aldermen.“The implication was the city was generating more money from the courts and it’s a feeding mechanism,” Ward 2 Alderman Gary Auch said at the Dec. 10 meeting. “The implication board members are asking for more money for the city’s general revenue fund is simply not true.”Ward 2 Alderman Damion Frederick added: “Clearly we’re not writing more tickets. We’re not collecting more income. The court is paying for itself. There are a lot of added benefits.”Among the findings in the city’s municipal court analysis:• Revenue for the 2015 fiscal year was $353,678, which was 5 percent of the city’s general operating revenue. The percentage is well below a state law that caps the amount of revenue collected from minor traffic violations and court costs at 20 percent.• Since the city does not turn cases over to collection agencies when there are unpaid fines, revenue increased significantly compared to how the county handled municipal court operations. The county’s normal practice was to forward a case to a collections agency when a payment was not received within 30 days, the report states.• The average number of tickets written by an officer per shift in 2015 was one, the same number as 2009, according to the report. The highest ticket average was 1.7 in 2011 and was attributed to the period when additional officers were employed.• A Warrenton police officer is writing a ticket 58 percent of the time on average when comparing the number of traffic stops with the number of violations written.Warrenton City Hall