RE: DATING, DOMESTIC, REPEAT, AND SEXUAL VIOLENCE CIVIL

INJUNCTION RETURN HEARINGS JANUARY 1, 2008

It is necessary to the dispatch of the business of the Circuit and County Court, Sixth Judicial Circuit, for county judges in Pinellas County to be assigned to domestic violence return hearings in Pinellas County. This temporary assignment of County Court judges to Circuit Court is being made because the County judges have volunteered to assist the circuit family law division. This temporary assignment of County Court judges to Circuit Court is made pursuant to Rule of Judicial Administration 2.215. This assignment is made for the calendar year 2008; however, it may be revoked if county judges are needed for county court matters or other circumstances require it.

In order to comply with the statutory requirements in section 741.30 and 784.06, Florida Statutes, that a return hearing be conducted within 15 days of the issuance of an ex parte injunction, and

In order to establish the schedule for return hearings for dating, domestic, repeat, and sexual violence injunctions for the period from January 1, 2008,

IT IS ORDERED:

1. Petitions for temporary and permanent injunctions against dating, domestic, repeat, and sexual violence shall continue to be assigned in accordance with the procedures for assignment of family law cases, based upon the ZIP code of the petitioner or the petitioner’s attorney. Domestic violence petitions where the parties have a pending matter in a UFC section shall be assigned to the UFC section.

2. The Clerk of the Circuit Court shall accept petitions for temporary and permanent injunctions against dating, domestic, repeat, and sexual violence at the Clearwater Courthouse, the St. Petersburg Judicial Building, and the Criminal Justice Center.

3. For petitions for temporary injunctions against domestic violence filed at the Clearwater Courthouse or the St. Petersburg Judicial Building, the Clerk shall present the petition to the section judge if the section judge is available. If the section judge is not available, the Clerk shall present the petition to the duty judge.

Except for petitions that are assigned to a UFC section, if a petitioner files a petition at a courthouse to which the petition has not been assigned, the Clerk shall present the petition to the duty judge at the courthouse where the petition is filed. For petitions that are assigned to a UFC section, the Clerk shall forward the petitions by facsimile to the Clerk at the Criminal Justice Center. The Clerk shall handle the petition as if it had been filed at the Criminal Justice Center in accordance with paragraph 5 of this Order.

4. For petitions for temporary injunctions against dating, repeat, and sexual violence filed at the Clearwater Courthouse or the St. Petersburg Judicial Building, the Clerk shall present the petition to a civil judge on an equal, at random, blind assignment system. If the civil judge is not available, the Clerk shall present the petition to the duty judge.

5. For petitions for temporary injunctions against dating, domestic, repeat, and sexual violence filed at the Criminal Justice Center, if a petitioner has a pending matter in Unified Family Court, the Clerk shall present the petition to the judge handling the pending matter. If the Unified Family Court judge is not available, the Clerk shall present the petition to the duty judge. If a petition is not assigned to Unified Family Court, the Clerk shall present the petition to the duty judge.

6. If petitions for domestic, repeat, dating or sexual violence are filed at the North County Traffic Court Facility or the South County Traffic Court Facility, the Clerk shall forward the petitions by facsimile as follows:

a. If the petitioner has a pending Unified Family Court matter, the Clerk shall forward the petition by facsimile to the Clerk at the Criminal Justice Center. The Clerk shall handle the facsimile as if it had been filed at the Criminal Justice Center in accordance with paragraph 5 of this Order.

b. All other petitions shall be forwarded to the Clerk at either the Clearwater Courthouse or the St. Petersburg Judicial Building based upon the section assigned to the petition. The Clerk shall handle the facsimile as if it had been filed in that courthouse in accordance with the procedures in paragraphs 3 and 4 of this Order.

7. Return hearings for petitions assigned to a Unified Family Court section shall be scheduled on the calendar of the section judge. Return hearings for all other petitions for an injunction against domestic, repeat, dating, or sexual violence shall be scheduled in Clearwater or St. Petersburg.

8. The county court judges who are assigned to dating, domestic, repeat and sexual violence return hearings are under and by virtue of the authority hereof, vested with all and singular the powers and prerogatives conferred by the Constitution and laws of the State of Florida upon the judges of the Circuit Court to which they are hereby assigned. Judge Patrick K. Caddell is assigned to be the primary judge for domestic violence return hearings in Clearwater and Judge Henry J. Andringa is assigned to be the primary judge for domestic violence return hearings in St. Petersburg. This includes domestic violence as well as dating, repeat, and sexual violence return hearings.

9. The duty judge assigned by the facility coordinator must be available to handle overflow cases and otherwise provide assistance to the county judge. The duty judge must maintain sufficient time on his or her calendar on the assigned day so that the duty judge has time to handle return hearings and handle other duty matters. If the duty judge assignment conflicts with any other commitment, it is the obligation of the judge to make arrangements with a fellow judge to exchange this assignment. Judges assigned to the civil division should not be assigned duty or accept an exchange of duty assignment during jury trial weeks. It is the responsibility of the assigned judge to provide timely notification of the exchange to all persons affected by the exchange.

10. Hearings shall be conducted every Wednesday in Courtroom F, 545 1^st Avenue N., St. Petersburg, Florida. The Clerk is directed to docket the cases as follows. Cases shall be calendared for 9:00 a.m., 10:00 a.m., 11:00 a.m., 1:30 p.m., and 2:30 p.m. Each calendar shall be assigned 10 cases beginning with the 9:00 a.m. calendar and then 10 cases shall be assigned to each subsequent calendar. The 2:30 p.m. calendar shall include cases with in-custody parties. If more cases need to be docketed in order to meet the statutory time frames, cases shall be added to the 2:30 p.m. calendar. This does not restrict the authority of the assigned judge to reset cases on a calendar when service of process has not been obtained. If the calendars are too large for the assigned judge or the duty judge to provide an adequate hearing, the assigned judge may move the hearing to later in the day in his or her sole discretion.

11. Unless otherwise provided herein, hearings shall be conducted every Thursday in Courtroom A, 315 Court Street, Clearwater, Florida. The Clerk is directed to docket the cases as follows. Cases shall be calendared for 9:00 a.m., 10:00 a.m., 11:00 a.m., 1:30 p.m., and

2:30 p.m. Each calendar shall be assigned 10 cases beginning with the 9:00 a.m. calendar and then 10 cases shall be assigned to each subsequent calendar. The 2:30 p.m. calendar shall include cases with in-custody parties. If more cases need to be docketed in order to meet the statutory time frames, cases shall be added to the 2:30 p.m. calendar. This does not restrict the authority of the assigned judge to reset cases on a calendar when service of process has not been obtained. If the calendars are too large for the assigned judge or the duty judge to provide an adequate hearing, the assigned judge may move the hearing to later in the day in his or her sole discretion.

In Clearwater, hearings shall be set for Tuesday, October 7, instead of Thursday October 9, due to the Yom Kippur holiday; set for Tuesday November 25, instead of Thursday, November 27, due to the Thanksgiving holiday; set for Tuesday December 23, instead of Thursday December 25, due to the Christmas holiday; and set for Tuesday December 30, instead of Thursday January 1, 2009 due to the New Year’s holiday.

Effective January 1, 2008, Administrative Orders 2006-080 PI-CIR and 2007-015 PI-CIR are hereby rescinded.

DONE AND ORDERED in Chambers at Clearwater, Pinellas County, Florida this _____ day of November 2007.

________________________________

Robert J. Morris, Jr., Chief Judge

cc: All Pinellas Judges
The Honorable Bernie McCabe, State Attorney
The Honorable Bob Dillinger, Public Defender
The Honorable Ken Burke, Clerk of the Circuit Court, Pinellas County
The Honorable Jim Coats, Sheriff, Pinellas County

Carol Heath, Executive Director, Pinellas County Clerk’s Office
Gay L. Inskeep, Trial Courts Administrator

Bar Association, Pinellas County
Law Libraries, Pinellas and Pasco County
Center Against Spouse Abuse, (CASA)

The Haven Domestic Violence Center