SHOALS — An encounter between officials from the Martin County Clerk’s office and Circuit Court Judge Joe Howell turned heated Thursday, just as a 9 a.m. meeting of the County Council prepared to adjourn.

What started as an attempt by the council to find out just how much progress an inexperienced clerk’s staff had made since the last council meeting dissolved into an argument when Bobbi Nonte, daughter of newly-installed Clerk John Hunt and administrator of the clerk’s office, slammed open the door to the clerk’s office to rejoin the discussion in the commissioners room.

Earlier in the meeting she and Hunt told the council their office was finally getting caught up after taking over in late March and then making it through their first election with few problems. Serving the court and handling elections are the two primary responsibilities of clerks. Another is collecting and distributing child support.

When Nonte entered, however, Howell had just finished informing the council of his fear that the situation in Hunt’s office hadn’t improved since the judge last reported to them just how far behind Hunt’s staff was in processing and filing the business of the court.

“It’s the clerk of the court,” Howell said, responding to Auditor Frances K. “Cookie” Taylor’s remark that the clerk’s job couldn’t be all that important if just anyone could run for the position. “And it’s getting to the point where it’s really pretty serious.”

Pointing out to Howell that the entire clerk’s staff had only been on the job since March 24, Taylor defended the employees Hunt hired after experienced staff quit their jobs the day he took over. Hunt was selected by a Democrat caucus Nov. 19, 2005, to replace retiring clerk Debbie Christmas, but his selection was challenged in court by clerk deputy Linda Nolan, landslide winner of Tuesday’s Democrat primary. Howell left Nolan in charge of the clerk’s office until special judge William Wiekert ruled the caucus vote was legal and Hunt should be clerk.

“They’ve only been in there a little over a month,” Taylor said.

“It doesn’t matter if they’ve been here a day or six months,” Howell said. “The work has got to be done.”

At least one council member, Lynn Gee, who served for eight years as matron of the Martin County Jail during her husband Joe’s tenure as sheriff, seems to realize how important it is that the court’s business be kept current.

“That’s not much at all,” said Gee, when Nonte said she’d typed in and filed 272 cases, including a number of traffic tickets. “Because if there’s 15 to 25 new cases a day, that’s not much at all.”

Upset, too, that Nonte accused his court reporters Lori Lundy and Dana Weyer of not helping train the clerk’s new staff members, Howell sent out a letter Thursday afternoon pointing out that his employees had indeed offered and tried to help. Then, too, he wrote that some individuals have been released from jail without posting bond because the necessary paperwork hasn’t been processed by the clerk’s office.

“The failure of you and your staff to process cases and documents in criminal cases has resulted, and continues to result, in individuals being released from the Martin County Security Center, almost on a daily basis, without the need to post a bond,” Howell wrote in the letter. “The types of cases where the failure of you and your staff may have affected public safety include both felony and misdemeanor cases involving allegations of battery, domestic battery, intimidation, dealing in controlled substances and many others.”

Though County Prosecutor Mike Steiner couldn’t confirm the number of arrested individuals who’ve left jail, he said he knew of at least one case where a breakdown had occurred, and a jailed inmate released.

“It’s my understanding it happened a couple of weeks ago, but I don’t know for sure where the breakdown occurred,” Steiner said. “And they have processed some of our deferrals, though I don’t know how many.”

Deferrals, too, are an important part of the criminal justice process because not only does the county get the money paid for deferrals, the clerk’s office also lets Steiner know who has paid and therefore shouldn’t be expected in traffic court.

A way for the prosecutor’s office to make money on first-time offenders and relieve clogged court dockets, the deferral system costs the offender a little more but keeps insurance companies out of it. And once the deferral fee is paid, the offender doesn’t have to go to court.

But if the deferrals aren’t processed, Steiner’s office has no idea who’s paid and who hasn’t, he said.

Howell wrote and sent copies of his letter to Nonte, as well as the Washington, Loogootee and Shoals newspapers to clarify accusations made during the morning argument.

In the letter he said he found it necessary because Nonte said Howell’s staff had not offered to help or train the more than 10 newly sworn-in employees of the clerk’s office.

“I’ve sworn in 11 workers for that office,” Howell confirmed by telephone.

Three full-time and two part-time staff members worked under Nolan.

Played out in front of the council, which has no supervisory power over either office, the confrontation between Howell and Nonte was cut short when the council abruptly adjourned on a motion by Lonnie Hawkins. Council President Rich Summers said he heard two different stories during the argument, and knew someone couldn’t be telling the whole story.

Hunt and Nonte had told the council earlier they still needed the $18,000 in additional appropriations from the Rainy Day Fund to pay part-time staff, but said while they weren’t doing a perfect job, they were getting caught up and learning the job as they went.

“I’m not saying it’s perfect, and we won’t be perfect for a long time,” Nonte said. “And I want to say publicly that the people that work in there have gone far and beyond to help out.”

Some training, too, had taken place that Nonte said was helpful. Howell said he sent for the clerk’s staff from Monroe County to help out, as well as officials from the Division of State Court Administration.

In other business, the council also agreed to provide $3,000 from the Rainy Day Fund for the coroner’s budget to pay for necessary services such as autopsies. Extension agent Sheryl J. Rosenberger, however, did not get the full-time employee she said she needs to get her through the summer and fair season.