Setting record straight

Deborah V. Trout, Hunterdon County sheriff
    Much has been said by my critics and it is impossible to deal with all of the “accusations” in a single letter. Therefore, it is my intention to address each allegation separately over the next weeks. Despite the fact that it seems to annoy my critics if I defend myself, I will continue to do so and will hazard their wrath.
   One of the allegations is that I reduced the Hunterdon County Justice Center’s public hours to spite the freeholders’ cuts to the Sheriff’s Office’s budget and, thereby, created a hardship for residents involved in divorce, child custody, welfare, and child and social services cases. Nothing could be further from the truth.
   Although there were discussions during the summer and fall of 2008 about reducing the courthouse’s evening hours and, at one point, discussions of even closing the Justice Center each evening at 6 p.m. because of significant budget constraints, the Justice Center’s hours never changed during all of last year. It closed on Mondays and Fridays at 6 p.m., and at 10 p.m. on Tuesdays through Thursdays, just as it always had.
   My critics opine that the people who need the courthouse open for divorce and child custody cases, etc. are now struggling because of cuts in the Justice Center’s hours. First, no one is struggling because the hours were never cut. Second, even if there had been a reduction in the building’s evening hours, it would never have affected people involved in court cases, because the courts don’t hold sessions at night. The Justice Center is for the Superior Courts, not for the municipal courts. Unless a trial runs late for some reason, which is a rarity, the courts are only in session until 4:30 p.m. The activities that take place during the evening hours are probation and parole reporting, the occasional meeting of some select committees, and the window to make child support payments is open until 8 p.m. one night a week.
   I offered to meet with the people behind the recall effort to answer their questions. I was told “no thanks.” They had all the “facts” they needed. Whether those “facts” are accurate appears to be of no import to them. If voters are intending to sign a petition, which they are absolutely free to do, I would only ask them to confirm the “facts” upon which the petition is based. It has become apparent that the movers behind the recall petition have their own political agenda. Although they claim that this is a non-partisan effort, some of those involved with the recall are on record as having supported my 2007 Republican primary opponents.
   If they don’t believe me when I state that the Justice Center’s hours in 2008 remained the same, they can call the judiciary’s administration and confirm the truth of my statements. Also, I encourage anyone who’s interested to stop by the Sheriff’s Office located at 8 Court St., Flemington, pick up a copy of the 2008 annual report, read it and learn about the duties, responsibilities and accomplishments of the Sheriff’s Office. I also would gladly speak to you about it or you can review the report online through the Sheriff’s Office’s Web site. (www.co.hunterdon.nj.us/sheriff.htm).