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Hamilton County juvenile court requests magistrate pay increases, tech upgrades and three detention posts
Summary
Sam Maris of juvenile court asked commissioners for magistrate promotions, replacement computers, audio-visual upgrades and three additional detention positions, citing staffing shortages and safety concerns; commissioners questioned prior-year budget trade-offs and asked for reconciled figures when the county budget is presented.
Sam Maris, representing Hamilton County Juvenile Court, told the budget committee the court is requesting raises, equipment and staffing to address long-standing operational gaps.
Maris said magistrates perform the same duties as presiding judges but are “the lowest paid attorneys in the county,” and requested $20,000 for magistrate promotions and an additional $15,000 at the June 30 budget point to phase increases. He also asked for $27,859 to buy 20 replacement computers and $95,000 for audio-visual upgrades to six courtrooms to support web video hearings. Separately, he requested $10,000 for promotions in the detention unit and asked for three additional positions in the detention unit, citing staffing shortages.
Maris described staffing shortfalls and safety concerns in detention: “In some shifts, as it stands right now, you may have 10 to 15 kids with 2 staff members to control them. It's a dangerous environment.” He said the office currently relies on overtime and that some detention officers have been out on on-the-job injury for months, increasing costs.
Commissioners pressed for clarity about whether the three positions were new or previously budgeted. Maris acknowledged that some positions were previously budgeted but were held open last year to pay for salary increases and promotions: “The way that we were able to work out a lot of the raises … was the agreeing to pay for them this budget year by holding those open positions.” Commissioners called that approach “kicking the can down the road” and questioned whether such changes should come back before the commission as a budget amendment. Finance and the mayor’s office were cited as having been involved in the prior-year arrangements.
Maris said he had asked conservatively for the three detention positions and admits support for filling them may be difficult in a tight budget year, but he argued staffing is needed to reduce reliance on overtime and address safety risks. When asked to rate the risk from 0 to 10 without the new positions, he declined to be precise but said a “conservative number” would be about 5 or 6.
No formal votes or decisions were taken at the hearing; commissioners said they will review department requests alongside the mayor’s recommended budget when it is issued later in the week.
