New computer system slows down muni courts

Remember earlier this year, when Houstonist told you about the municipal courts' new computerized case management system? It was supposed to go online in early January, but somehow that got pushed back to this weekend. And now that it's in place — hold on to your hat, this is a shocker — the system isn't making things more efficient. But of course!

The $13 million network was designed to help the city handle the 1.2 million traffic tickets and minor criminal cases it gets every year. It went online at 7 a.m. Saturday and performed pretty well over the weekend, when traffic at the Municipal Courthouse was light, but come Monday morning everything went to pot. Most of the delays were caused by employees trying to get used to the system, officials said, even though they went through a combined 9,000 hours of training before it went live. The result: Many people who showed up to pay minor traffic and parking tickets ended up sitting around the courthouse all day.

Court officials say the delays should disappear as employees get used to the new computer system. In the meantime, if you have to go to the courthouse, we suggest you take a lunch.