MONTVALE—A last-minute agreement between the mayors of Montvale, Park Ridge and Woodcliff Lake to unanimously agree on a judge and prosecutor for Pascack Joint Municipal Court has paved the way for the unique three-town joint court system to continue at least through January 2026.
Montvale Mayor Michael Ghassali, whose town hosts the Joint Municipal Court, said that due a lack of unanimity on choosing a municipal court judge and prosecutor, Montvale had called an emergency meeting on Friday, Dec. 29, 2023 and was prepared to consider a resolution to withdraw from the joint court and only offer a future shared service to its two neighbors.
However, the three mayors were able to come to an agreement on a judge and prosecutor, with some help from District 39 State Sen. Holly Schepisi.
Gov. Phil Murphy must approve the judge selection, while the three towns must agree and appoint a prosecutor and public defender for the joint court.
The unanimous selection for Municipal Court judge was Anthony S. Bocchi; the unanimous selection for municipal prosecutor was Rosario Presti Jr. Under the Joint Municipal Court set-up, all three towns must agree on the appointments.
The Pascack Joint Municipal Court is a court of limited jurisdiction, having responsibility for matters that occur within the geographic boundaries of Montvale, Park Ridge and Woodcliff Lake. This court hears a variety of cases, including motor vehicle offenses, minor criminal offenses, borough ordinance violations and neighborhood disputes.
The joint court was created through a cooperative effort by the governing bodies of the three Boroughs, and opened on April 1, 2011. Both the court office and courtroom are located in Montvale