60th/3rd District Court reports steady caseload growth, MyFile rollout and plans for expanded specialty courts

At a Kent County Board of Commissioners meeting, Danielle Castillo, court administrator for the 60th/3rd District Court, reported rapid caseload growth at the court, progress implementing the state—MyFile electronic filing system and plans to seek funding to sustain and expand specialty court programs.

Castillo said the court has taken in about 8,000 new cases over five years, a roughly 47% increase in filings tied to population and development in the court—s jurisdiction. She told commissioners the court saw nearly 1,500 additional civil filings between 2023 and 2024, more than 400 new misdemeanor cases and about 550 more civil infractions in the same span.

The court rolled out the state—s MyFile e-filing system on June 12 and, according to Castillo and deputy court administrator Tricia Finney, staff have processed about 25,000 documents and opened roughly 2,500 new cases through the system. Castillo said the change has helped a small civil filings team catch up from backlogs and reduced the manual paperwork burden.

Castillo described staffing and operations: the court has 17 court clerks and three judicial clerks in case management; five full-time probation officers and two probation clerks run the probation department and related programs; the court—s bench includes Chief Judge Jeffrey O'Hara, Judge Kirsten Holtz (appointed February 2024) and Judge Daniel O'Hara (recently elected and beginning his term in January). Alex Grimes is the court—s full-time attorney-magistrate, Jacqueline DeHaan is chief probation officer and Cara DL is case management supervisor.

The court—s recovery court (an OWI-related problem-solving court) is at capacity with 30 active participants, Castillo said, and the court is concluding a seated grant that funded recovery court operations. She said the court will seek other funding sources to continue and possibly expand recovery court services, and judges have expressed interest in creating a separate mental-health specialty court. Castillo said best practice guidance sets a recovery court capacity at about 30 participants, which is why expansion would likely require additional funding and staff.

Commissioners asked questions after the presentation. Commissioner Ponstein asked whether other district courts in the county fund themselves and whether courts collaborate; Castillo said the county-funded 60th/3rd is unique in Kent County but that court administrators meet regularly to coordinate services. Commissioner Stack praised the MyFile rollout and asked that conflict-of-interest language be considered in future agreements when the court pursues partnerships; Commissioner Pacla asked about priorities on the court—s horizon, and Castillo repeated plans to seek funding to sustain recovery court and pursue a mental-health court. Commissioner LeGrand and others voiced support for problem-solving courts as a way to reduce recidivism.

The presentation included a public-satisfaction survey summary that rated the court highly and a staff-focused overview of case management operations and technology upgrades.

Castillo and Finney stayed after the presentation to take individual commissioner questions and offered to return with further details on funding options for specialty courts.