Yesterday, I ran into Judge Don Scaglione at Circuit City on Mariner Blvd. It was nice to have an informal chat with Don about the improvements he has initiated in the Hernando County Courts since he got elected to office in 2004. A Mediation Program has been developed in the Small Claims Division to expedite the case loads. What was approximately a 4-month wait for a pre-trial conference is now taking about 6 weeks, with the aid of a Mediation Program. What is most remarkable is that most cases now are being settled with the aid of court mediators at pre-trail conference, with very few (cases) having to go to trial. This is a considerable improvement in the efficiency of Small Claims and will become even more efficient when Hernando County mediators finish their 9 month training courses (Small Claims is now using the service of mediators from out of county until Hernando County mediators are certified). Judge Scaglione also said improved video conferencing between counties for criminal cases has improved scheduling, as well as aided in security, by not having to move prisoners, just paperwork by courier. Judge Scaglione lamented on the lack of court room space for all the judges, so I suggested he contact the new committee of 25 for Capital Improvements, that was recently appointed by the Board of County Commissioners, to input his suggestions. Hopefully, this committee will interview the judges for their suggestions on how to correct the lack of courtroom space during their ad hoc committee meetings before submitting their reports to the BOCC.
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