The weight of charges against City Councilor Kendra Lara following a June car crash into a Jamaica Plain house got a little lighter, with prosecutors dismissing two charges.

Lara, 34, who represents Jamaica Plain as the District 6 councilor, appeared in municipal court in West Roxbury Friday with speeding and reckless operation dismissed from the lineup of charges related to the June 30 crash. A charge for failing to wear a seat belt will not move forward as it has reached its end with a finding of not responsible.

The charges remaining include recklessly permitting bodily injury to a child under 14 years old, negligent operation of a motor vehicle, driving with a suspended license, driving an uninsured vehicle, driving an unregistered vehicle, and not placing a child under 8 years old and under 58 inches in a car seat. She pleaded not guilty to all charges.

Lara has not been licensed for a decade, the Herald has reported. The injury to a child charge is related injuries suffered by her child in the crash.

The case has been prosecuted by Joel Luna, an assistant district attorney for the Worcester DA office. He was tapped as a special prosecutor to avoid any conflicts of interest, as the wife of one of her primary opponents for city council, William King, works at the Suffolk DA office.

The hearing was scheduled to debate a motion filed by Lara’s attorney, Carlton Williams, that argues all the charges should be dropped because a citation was not issued or mailed to Lara.

State law “creates a very clear requirement that a citation alleging motor vehicle infractions must be given to the violator at the time and place of the offense or offenses,” Williams said, according to previous Herald reporting.

“The appropriate remedy for this improper handling of a citation for automobile violations is dismissal,” Williams wrote in the filing.

Lara has said the crash, which may have contributed to voters denying her bid for re-election last month, came about because she had to swerve to avoid a car pulling away from the curb and “could not hit the brakes fast enough before colliding with the home,” according to the police report. It’s a story the other driver cast doubt on, according to the police report.

Defense attorney Williams did not respond to the Herald’s request for comment.

Lara is next due in court on Nov. 15.

Christmas comes early for the Boston City Council.

Councilors continue to hand out hefty, taxpayer-funded pay bonuses to staffers in a practice that smacks of old school politics excess.

Councilor-at-large Michael Flaherty, who is retiring at the end of the year, this week doled out nearly $25,000 worth of bonuses to four staffers, records show.

That includes a $9,885 one-time bonus to staffer Paul Sullivan, $6,115 bonuses to aides Clare Brooks and Mary Karski and a $2,519 bonus to assistant Tricia Kalayjian, according to records.

Flaherty isn’t the only one giving bonuses but it adds a certain sting when a councilor hands them out a few months before leaving office. Councilor Tania Fernandes Anderson tried to give one staffer — her sister — a $7,000 bonus until she was caught by the Ethics Commission.

How many people would like to get a $10,000 or $7,000 bonus? A lot of people work hard, but don’t get handed big taxpayer funded bonuses.

They get on the malfunctioning T after putting their kids to school, then their taxes go to pay this? It’s an entitlement the average working person in the city of Boston doesn’t get. It would be a godsend to get one.

This is the most expensive city council in Boston history and one of the most inept.

Councilors are well paid now at $103,500 annually and they’re soon to get another big raise.

All of the staff payouts were approved by the council but they’re not labeled on the agenda as bonuses – they are called an “order(s) for the reappointment of temporary employee(s)” in a sleight of hand maneuver. Not exactly transparent.

Each councilor gets a budget of $341,500 to pay for staff salaries, while President Ed Flynn gets $400,000.

If there is any money leftover at the end of the year, councilors can spend it on bonuses so the money isn’t returned to the budget. It’s a little known tradition that has gone on for years.

Flynn confirmed that councilors routinely hand out bonuses when they have money left in their accounts.

“At the end of the year if you have money left over people try to give it out as bonuses,” he said. City councilors have the flexibility to make those adjustments. People want to end the year with no money left over.”

But in what’s supposed to be an era of new politics in Boston City Hall, this is a type of practice that turns off ordinary people.

There’s been virtually no reform at City Hall and this is a glaring example. What justifies the bonus besides the fact that they can?

It’s a practice that should be discontinued and the dysfunctional City Council should set an example.