Southlake’s Municipal Court Has a New Clerk of the Court

The Southlake City Council appointed Jodi Bolton the Municipal Clerk of the Court at the September 20, 2022, City Council meeting.

Jodi has worked for the City of Southlake in the Municipal Court division since December 2006. She has been certified as a Level 2 Municipal Court Clerk by the Texas Municipal Court Education Center and was previously in the Court Supervisor position.

With this new role, Jodi will be the custodian of all court records, oversee the daily operations and scheduling of the Court, and work closely with the Presiding Judge, Carol Montgomery. She also manages the Teen Court Supervisor, who oversees the Metroport Teen Court Program, a multi-city program housed here in Southlake.

Metroport Teen Court

Metroport Teen Court is a volunteer program that provides teens in middle and high school an alternative to the criminal justice system while allowing them to assume responsibility for their actions by participating in the judicial process and completing community service hours.

The program was established over 20 years ago and is one of the City’s most successful partnerships. The cities of Southlake, Grapevine, Colleyville, and Keller participate. Each city signs a yearly interlocal agreement that funds and authorizes the program. The agreement also establishes the 12-member Teen Court Advisory Board. The Board consists of one City Council Member from each participating City and two council-appointed citizens from those cities. It meets five times yearly, advising the Teen Court Staff and acting as a liaison between the program and each community.

For a teen going through the program, completion of their obligations allows them not to have an offense recorded as a conviction on their record. More than 15,000 community service hours are completed each year

Southlake Municipal Court

The Southlake Municipal Court was established as a Court of Record in 1990 with the passing of a City Ordinance. Under Texas Government Code 30, there are established requirements for a court of record, one being that the City must appoint a clerk to be the record keeper of those criminal records.

With the appointment of Jodi Bolton as the Municipal Court Clerk and the continued partnership of Metroport Teen Court, the Municipal Court and Teen Court divisions will continue their hard work both in and out of the courtroom.