Issuu

BENCHMARK

President’s Report

Traci Fann MMACJA President

Dear Members of MMACJA, It is with great pride that I have served as President of this remarkable organization for the past year. Since 2000, when I was ﬁrst elected as Judge for the City of Raytown, I have had the privilege of being a member of MMACJA. Over the years, one of the greatest strengths I’ve witnessed within this Association is its members. I’ve had the pleasure of meeting many outstanding individuals from across the state—people I may not have encountered otherwise— and building friendships that I value deeply.

Our Association plays a vital role in connecting judges across Missouri, not only through professional networking but also by providing critical education and training. e continued success and vitality of MMACJA rest in the hands of its dedicated membership. In May 2025, we proudly celebrated our 60th Anniversary—a testament to the enduring commitment and impact of our Association. And we look forward to the years to come.

All of our members are volunteers, working diligently to ensure that this year’s Annual Court Conference is ﬁlled with meaningful and practical information for everyone in their oﬃcial roles. Each event is thoughtfully curated by our conference chairs, who introduce timely and relevant topics. If there are areas of interest you would like to see covered in future seminars, we encourage you to share your ideas with us.

It is both a privilege and an honor to serve as your President this year. I look forward to working together to further the mission and legacy of MMACJA.

Warm regards,

Traci Fann President of MMACJA

Shannon Norman 819 Mid Rivers Mall Dr. St Peters, MO 63376 636.387.7470

MMACJA Oﬃce

Jean Harmison Newsletter Coordinator

4730 S. National, Building A1 Springﬁeld, MO 65810 417.886.8606

jean@cmsmgt.com

e opinions expressed in this publication do not necessarily reﬂect the views of the MMACJA,its board of directors, or the editor.

BYLAW AMENDMENT TO PRESIDENT’S ADVISORY BOARD

by Kevin R. Kelly

e Board of Directors at the March meeting amended the By-Laws of MMACJA to limit the number of the President’s Advisory Committee to six (6) former directors or oﬃcers. is amendment will be eﬀective in May 2027.

e President is empowered to appoint any former director or oﬃcer to the President’s Advisory Committee. Members of this committee may attend and participate in board meetings but are not entitled to a vote. Previously, there was no limit to the number of former directors or oﬃcers the President could appoint to the Committee.

e amended section is set out below:

Article Five Section 5 e President shall be empowered to appoint no more than six (6) former directors or o cers as members of the President’s Standing Advisory Committee. ese appointments

shall be reserved for members whose active participation on the Board, in the President’s opinion, will assist the President and Board of Directors during the President’s term of o ce in accomplishing the duties of the Board and the purposes of the Association. ose judges appointed to the President’s Standing Advisory Committee shall receive notice of every meeting of the Board of Directors, including Special Meetings and Votes under Section 6, and shall be permitted to attend and speak but shall have no vote on any matter. Subject to the advice and consent of a two-thirds majority of the Board of Directors, the President, in his or her discretion, may confer on any retired member serving on the President’s Standing Advisory Committee, the title of Director Emeritus. Directors Emeritus shall be exempt from the payment of annual dues to the Association, and they shall be compensated for their reasonable registration, food, lodging and mileage expenses for attendance at the meetings of the Board of Directors and the Annual Conference.

2026 Board of Directors

PROPOSED BY-LAWS AMENDMENT

e Board of Directors at the March Board meeting passed a proposed by-laws amendment to reduce the size of the board of directors. is amendment was precipitated due to the reduced number of municipalities maintaining their own municipal courts, either eliminating them altogether, have been transferred to another municipality or have been transferred to be heard at the Associate Circuit Court. It was determined the size of the Board of Directors should be reduced.

e by-laws of MMACJA provide that any amendments to Section 1, Article 5 (Board of Directors), and all sections of Article Seven (Elections) require approval of the membership at the annual membership meeting. erefore, the amendment is set out below will be presented during the Business meeting at the MMACJA Annual Conference on Wednesday, May 20, 2026, at 2:00 PM. e amendment, if approved, would take eﬀect at the May 2027 Conference. First version is the current By-Law with language to be removed stricken and amended language in bold print. Second version is the by-laws if the amendment is approved.

ARTICLE FIVE – BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Section 1 e Board of Directors shall consist of:

1. e four (4) oﬃcers listed in Article 4.1, 2. e immediate past-president, the executive secretary when that position is held by a member meeting the qualiﬁcations of Article 3.1,

3. Twelve(12)at-large directors, and 3.Six(6)at-large directors, and

4. irteen district directors; consisting of two (2) directors from District One and one (1) director from each of the other eleven (11) districts. 4.Twelve (12) district directors; consisting of two (2) directors from District ree (St. Louis) and one (1) director from each of the other ten (10) districts.

e districts are shown on the state map attached hereto and hereof as Exhibit A and on the District Designations by Circuit and County attached hereto and made a part hereof as Exhibit B (PDF). e at-large directors and district directors shall take office immediately following their election at the annual membership meeting and shall serve one (1) year or until their successor is elected and qualified. A director’s position shall not be deemed vacated solely because during such term their judicial services cease. Each officer’s term on the Board of Directors shall coincide with their respective term as an officer. e immediate past-president and, when eligible, the executive secretary shall serve one (1) year on the Board of Directors. Each member of the Board of Directors shall be entitled to vote on any matter before the Board.

e districts are shown by the District Designations by Circuit and County attached hereto and made a part hereof as Exhibit A (PDF). e at-large directors and district directors shall take office immediately following their election at the annual membership meeting and shall serve one (1) year or until their successor is elected and qualified. A director’s position shall not be deemed vacated solely because during such term their judicial services cease. Each officer’s term on the Board of Directors shall coincide with their respective terms as an officer. e immediate pastpresident and, when eligible, the executive secretary shall serve one (1) year on the Board of Directors. Each member of the Board of Directors shall be entitled to vote on any matter before the Board.

ARTICLE SEVEN – ELECTIONS

Section 3 Following the election of oﬃcers at the annual membership meeting, the election of District Directors shall proceed as follows:

4.Each caucus shall elect one (1) member by plurality vote to serve as that district’s representative; provided the caucus for District One shall elect two (2) members by plurality vote as its district representatives. e caucus chairperson shall report the name of the district representative to the President.

6.Each member shall attend and vote in only one (1) caucus. Each member at the caucus for District One shall have two (2) votes to cast for its district representatives.

ARTICLE SEVEN – ELECTIONS

Section 3 Following the election of oﬃcers at the annual membership meeting, the election of District Directors shall proceed as follows:

5.Each caucus shall elect one (1) member by plurality vote to serve as that district’s representative; provided the caucus for District ree shall elect two (2) members by plurality as its district representatives. e caucus chairperson shall report the name of the district representative to the President.

6.Each member shall attend and vote in only one (1) caucus. Each member at the caucus for District ree shall have two (2) votes to cast for its district representatives.

ARTICLE FIVE – BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Section 1 e Board of Directors shall consist of:

1. The four (4) oﬃcers listed in Article 4.1, 2. The immediate past-president, the executive secretary when that position is held by a member meeting the qualiﬁcations of Article 3.1,

3. Six (6) at-large directors, and 4. Twelve(12)districtdirectors;consistingoftwo(2)directorsfrom District Three (St.Louis) and one (1) director from each of the other ten(10)districts.

e districts are shown by the District Designations by Circuit and County attached hereto and made a part hereof as Exhibit A (PDF). e at-large directors and district directors shall take office immediately following their election at the annual membership meeting and shall serve one (1) year or until their successor is elected and qualified. A director’s position shall not be deemed vacated solely because during such term their judicial services cease. Each officer’s term on the Board of Directors shall coincide with their respective terms as an officer. e immediate past-president and, when eligible, the executive secretary shall serve one (1) year on the Board of Directors. Each member of the Board of Directors shall be entitled to vote on any matter before the Board.

ARTICLE SEVEN – ELECTIONS

Section 3 Following the election of oﬃcers at the annual membership meeting, the election of District Directors shall proceed as follows:

5.Each caucus shall elect one (1) member by plurality vote to serve as that district’s representative; provided the caucus for District ree

shall elect two (2) members by plurality as its district representatives. e caucus chairperson shall report the name of the district representative to the President.

6.Each member shall attend and vote in only one (1) caucus. Each member at the caucus for District ree shall have two (2) votes to cast for its district representatives.

PROPOSED CHANGE TO BY-LAWS MMACJA DISTRICT

DESIGNATIONS BY CIRCUIT AND COUNTY

EXHIBIT A TO BY-LAWS

MMACJA’S 60TH ANNIVERSARY

In May of 2025 at the annual conference, our organization celebrated 60 years with an elaborate ﬁreworks display and a presentation of the history of the organization by the Honorable Kevin Kelly. In January of 1965, the organization’s formation was announced in the MoBar Bulletin as the Municipal and Traffic Judges Association.

In 1966, Missouri Bar Bulletin announced the first board members of the organization: Judges Albert J. Haller, McCormick V. Wilson, Louis David, Louis Huston, and Paul Panek. That year, the first Missouri & Traffic Judges Journal was published.

In 1967, the organization began to host an Annual Conference.

In 1969,the organization oﬃcially changed its name to Missouri Municipal and Magistrate Judges Association, eventually becoming the Missouri Municipal and Associate Circuit Judges Association

Over the years, the organization’s newsletter became known as the Benchmark.

JUDGE ROBERT D. AULGAR BIO

Judge Robert D. Aulgur was born on July 16, 1954 to his loving parents Robert M. Aulgur and Susan Ann Aulgur. He grew up in Gallatin, Missouri with his sister Ann, and graduated from Gallatin High School in 1972.

Judge Aulgur graduated magma cum laude from Westminster College in 1976. While there he served as the Annotator and Consul for the Delta Tau chapter of Sigma Chi, won the Remmel prize for his outstanding thesis in History, and was a charter member of Alpha Chi honoring outstanding Westminster College students for their scholarship among many other college activities.

Judge Aulgur would also serve Westminster College in his later years by serving on the college’s Alumni Council, as an adjunct professor of faculty teaching business law, a member of the Westminster College’s President’s Society, and serving as the chapter advisor to the Delta Tau chapter of Sigma Chi.

Upon his graduation from Westminster College, Judge Aulgur attended and graduated from the University of Missouri School of Law in 1979. While in law school Judge Aulgur participated in Phi Alpha Delta and clerked for the Columbia, Missouri law firm of Brandecker and Smull.

After nine months working as a staff attorney for Legal Aid of Western Missouri, Judge Aulgur spent his next nine years serving as an assistant prosecuting attorney and first assistant prosecuting attorney in Cole and Boone Counties in Missouri. During that time he was honored to be named as The Missouri Prosecutor of the Year in 1983 by the Missouri Association of Prosecuting Attorneys. In 1985, then Missouri Governor, John Ashcroft, named Judge Aulgur as the General Counsel for the Missouri Department of Revenue. He served in this capacity until he left to become a partner at Shurtleff, Froeschner, Bunn, and Aulgur in 1993. Judge Aulgur practiced primarily in the areas of criminal, D.W.I., mediation, and family law.

Judge Aulgur left his firm and opened his own firm in 2000. Columbia Mayor Darwin Hindman appointed Robert D. Aulgur as the full time judge of the municipal division for the City of Columbia Municipal Court in 2003. He joined our Association shortly thereafter.Aulgur has served the Missouri Municipal and Associate Judges Association for many years. Judge Aulgur has served as secretary, vice president and chairman of the annual conference, and President of our Association in 2013-2014. He left the Board of Directors of the M.M.A.C.J.A. in 2015 and continues to this day to serve on The President’s Standing Advisory Committee. During his service to the M.M.A.C.J.A. Judge Aulgur has chaired the Legislative and Office of Supreme Court Administrator Liaison committees of the board and served on the long range planning, annual conference, and judicial independence and integrity committees. Judge Aulgur has also served as a reviewer for the Missouri desk book on Criminal Practice Fourth edition, and has written a variety of articles for The Benchmark.

Judge Aulgur has lectured on a variety of topics over his many years of law practice. These topics include Driving While Intoxicated issues, Pre-trial Preparation, Presentation of Evidence, and various Search and Seizure issues for the Missouri Municipal and Associate Circuit Judges Association, the Missouri Bar, the Missouri Office of Prosecution Services, the Missouri Highway Patrol, the Law Enforcement Training Institute, and the Jefferson City and Columbia police departments.

Judge Aulgur retired from the judiciary and the full time practice of law in January, 2017. However, he has kept busy with M.M.A.C.J.A., travel, family, and other charitable and social activities since then. He married Dr. Linda Aulgur in 1991. They blended their family and their three children have blessed them with six grandchildren.