LAFAYETTE, Ind. (AP): A decline in the number of misdemeanor cases filed is prompting an Indiana court to reorganize its staff and cut its payroll.</span>
Tippecanoe County Court Services will cut four of its seven existing full-time staff positions this summer as part of a broader effort to streamline the way defendant needs are met.
Court Services will become a division within the county probation department. That will require all Court Services evaluators and case managers to be eligible for certification as a probation officer.
Tippecanoe County Judge Sean Persin says St. Joseph County has made a similar move following passage of a state law that calls for counties to eliminate redundant services.
He says counties that duplicate services aren't given priority status for state grants.
