$155,000 of court money unaccounted for, report shows

A review of financial handlings within Maricopa’s municipal and county justice courts released Wednesday afternoon shows more than $155,000 in cash, check and credit card receipts has been unaccounted for.

The review was conducted in December by auditing firm Heinfeld, Meech & Co., P.C. at the request of the city of Maricopa. It explains the review was initiated when city officials suspected the court was not making required payments to the city for court fines and fees.

Maricopa’s city court and the Maricopa-Stanfield Justice Court are housed in the same building at 19955 N. Wilson Ave.

The Arizona Supreme Court issued an administrative order last week that Pinal County Superior Court Judge Stephen McCarville take over the daily operations of the courts. One person who worked at the courts is no longer employed.

The auditing firm’s review – a six-page report and letter addressed to city Finance Director Brad Ritschel – was released to InMaricopa.com through a public records request. 

Financial records for both courts showed cash, check and credit card receipts from July 2012 to November 2013 totaled $1.7 million, according to the auditing firm’s review. But bank statements for the same period came out to $1.6 million, leaving a shortfall of more than $155,000.

City spokesman Ricky Alvarado said when the city conducted a year-end review of finances, officials discovered Maricopa was paying out more in court operation costs than what the city was supposed to be receiving in revenue. That raised questions.

The auditing firm’s report states: “When the city approached the court clerk’s office, the office claimed checks were written to the city but the city never received the funds.”

The firm reviewed bank statements, analyzed computer software used for tracking transactions and looked at money found within the court clerk’s office.

More than $112,500 in undeposited cash, checks and money orders were found in the office.

“Many of the checks were several months old, with the oldest one date Oct. 4, 2012,” the report states.

Checks and cash were found in an “unorganized nature.” The report breaks down where money was located:

• More than $65,000 in open and unopened mail on top of a desk.
• More than $34,400 in cash in an unlocked drawer within the office.
• More than $12,600 in other drawers, files and cabinets.

Checks and money orders “were not clearly endorsed” with a restrictive endorsement stamp, the report states.

Also, an employee’s personal records, such as personal check stubs, police reports and IRS debt notices, were mixed in with court documents. It’s unclear if this is the same person who is no longer employed.

The report states the court maintained two bank accounts – one for the municipal court and the county court. A review of bank statements showed that bank deposits fell short of cash and check collections by more than $3,200 from the period of Dec. 18, 2012 and Feb. 15, 2013.

Deposits were made every few days from July 2012 to mid-November 2012. After this time, deposits were “made sporadically.”

No deposits were made in 2013 for the months of January, March and November.

The report states deposits and disbursements were not recorded in computerized software used for tracking banking transactions.

With the review of cash and checks found in the office, as well as bank statements, the auditing firm concluded the unaccounted for money could fall between $46,000 and more than $155,000.

The firm made several recommendations in the report “to ensure strong internal controls in cash handling.”