Evaluators reviewed Municipal Court funding between 2008 and 2015 and found that three entities were responsible for funding the Court (City, State, and Court), but the ambiguity of the legal framework failed to delineate clearly each entity’s responsibilities. The resulting financial practices raised numerous concerns regarding the transparency, accuracy, and legality of the Court’s funding structure.

The OIG recommended that the City fully fund Municipal Court operations through a General Fund appropriation, and the Court and the City should improve the transparency of their financial arrangements. In addition, the City should lobby the state legislature to repeal the laws that establish fees to fund Municipal Court.

The New Orleans Office of Inspector General (OIG) evaluated the funding structure of the New Orleans Traffic Court (Court). The purpose of the evaluation was to determine the full cost of the Court during the years 2008 to 2012 and to determine how the City of New Orleans, State of Louisiana, and Court allocated resources to achieve the goals and objectives of the Court.

The report is part of a series of reports about the funding of the criminal justice system.

The New Orleans Office of Inspector (OIG) evaluated Driving While Intoxicated (DWI) case management at Traffic Court in Orleans Parish from arrest through prosecution, sentencing, and case closing. The goal of this evaluation was to examine how the New Orleans Police Department, the City Attorney’s Office, and Traffic Court managed DWI cases, and whether arrests, prosecutions, adjudication, and probation of DWI cases were in keeping with state laws, professional standards, and best practices.

The New Orleans Office of Inspector General (OIG) followed up on its 2011 report “Assessment of New Orleans’ System of City Courts and Performance Review of New Orleans Traffic Court.” The review encompassed City and Court policies, finances, and practices for the 2012 calendar year.