A court ruling Tuesday paves the way for County Judge Barry Hyde, Pulaski County's chief executive, to eliminate the probation departments of two circuit judges despite a lawsuit that tried to stop him from cutting those nine jobs.
Hyde prevailed in a countersuit in which he disputed the legality of the probation departments, the only ones run by judges in the state.
Probation is the court-ordered supervision imposed on some defendants convicted of criminal activity. Probation everywhere else is managed by the Division of Community Correction, a subsidiary of the Arkansas Department of Corrections, which also operates the state prisons.
Tuesday, 6th Judicial Circuit Judge Tim Fox sided with Hyde in finding that the state law that created those probation departments is "special and local" legislation -- banned under the 14th Amendment to the Arkansas Constitution -- since it benefits only three of the 17 courts of the 6th Judicial Circuit of Perry and Pulaski counties. Fox further recognized Hyde as the ultimate hiring authority for the county, which gives him firing power as well. An appeal is expected.
Hyde commended Tuesday's ruling, which allows the state to take over probation. The decision allows Hyde to eliminate nine jobs, although only six of those positions are currently filled.
"We appreciate the employees that provide probation services in our county. The State has the authority and responsibility to provide probation services to defendants in all of the counties and all of the courts in the state," Hyde said in a statement. "Defendants will see no immediate changes in first and fifth division probation. And we look forward to working with ... Community Corrections, Pulaski County probation officers and the circuit judges to ensure a smooth transition."
Only three judges, Leon Johnson, Herb Wright and LaTonya Austin Honorable, are authorized for probation departments, but Wright voluntarily gave his up years ago. The Quorum Court voted to fund the departments in November as part of adopting the county's annual budget, with Hyde publicly announcing then that he would not allow the necessary funding after making his intentions known in the weeks beforehand to other administrators.
The county had been funding probation since the 1980s, even approving an expansion in 2008. Honorable's probation department had a staff of six while Johnson's department had three. Honorable and her judicial predecessor, Wendell Griffen, sued to stop Hyde in December, in part disputing his authority to hire and fire their employees. Johnson was not part of the litigation until Hyde brought him in through his countersuit.