CLEARFIELD — The city will be using its police department to provide the services of a constable until a newly appointed, temporary provider can fill this need.
Constable services include court security such as a bailiff, process serving for warrants and subpoenas and transporting prisoners.
The constable services formerly provided by Jack Howell can no longer be used because he is losing his appointment as a Morgan County constable, city documents state.
Without an official appointment by a county or a first- or second-class city, Howell’s company cannot provide constable services to other entities.
“We just can’t use him now,” said City Manager Adam Lenhard of Howell’s company, which has provided the service for several years. “They did a fantastic job for us. We were very satisfied with the service they provided.”
Without Howell’s service, the city needs a new constable service provider.
According to the city documents, given the time constraints of finding a new service provider, it would be impossible to conduct standard procurement procedures without severe disruption to the Justice Court.
Lenhard said the city had relatively short notice of the change, which is why the city council addressed the issue in a special meeting during the first week of January.
The council approved a bid for Court Services of Utah to provide short-term constable services for up to six months. Pay for the services is variable, as there is a table outlining costs per service type.
For instance, bailiff services are $23 an hour, while a warrant service is $50 per warrant. There are fees for a number of items, including transporting prisoners.
However, those services, through Court Services of Utah, will not start until the fourth week of January.
In the interim period, the city is using its police department to perform the duties. Police are providing the constable services for the first two weeks in January, and court is closed the third week.
“It’s a juggling act,” Lenhard said. “The police department is handling it well right now. It’s only for two weeks so we think it is manageable.”
With the urgent need temporarily filled, the city will have time to consider long-term options for the constable services.
Officials are deciding whether they want to provide services in-house, partly because there has been talk of legislation that could prevent constables from operating outside the county in which they are appointed, city documents state.
Lenhard said the temporary fix will allow the city time to consider all its
options.
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