Which statement is true about who may issue a summons?

Which statement is true about who may issue a summons?

• A. When a judge is in office part-time, the clerk may use the judge's signature stamp to sign judgments on cases in which a defendant pays a fine at the clerk's office.
• B. Municipal court clerks may stamp the judge's signature on mental health commitments when the judge is not available and it is an emergency.
• C. Municipal court clerks cannot be held liable for performing judicial duty if the judge requires the clerk to perform the duty.
• D. Only a judge may issue a summons for a defendant.

Answer: (D)

A summons is a formal court order directing a defendant to appear in court, and the authority to issue that order rests with a judicial officer. In municipal court practice, this means the judge must issue the summons; clerks may prepare the document and handle routine processing, but they do not have the power to issue the summons on their own. This ensures the command to appear comes from the court's official authority, not from administrative staff. The other situations try to assign the act of issuing or signing judicial documents to clerks or to actions outside the act of issuing a summons itself, which is why they’re not correct. The essential point is that the summons is a judicial act that requires the judge’s authority.

A summons is a formal court order directing a defendant to appear in court, and the authority to issue that order rests with a judicial officer. In municipal court practice, this means the judge must issue the summons; clerks may prepare the document and handle routine processing, but they do not have the power to issue the summons on their own. This ensures the command to appear comes from the court's official authority, not from administrative staff.

The other situations try to assign the act of issuing or signing judicial documents to clerks or to actions outside the act of issuing a summons itself, which is why they’re not correct. The essential point is that the summons is a judicial act that requires the judge’s authority.