Columbus police got an early start Thursday morning and continued through the day as they served warrants and arrested individuals who have not taken advantage of the new court amnesty program.
CPD Public Information Officer Terrie Songer said a total of 30 arrests were made by late Thursday afternoon.
“Along with the 30 arrests, we made approximately $16,000 in fines. Officers will continue to be on the streets throughout the evening,” she said,
Following a 6 a.m. briefing by CPD Chief Joseph St. John, officers were handed the necessary paperwork needed to serve warrants to those failing to come by the police department to pay their fines, and sent out to get their people.
Songer said on several occasions when officers went to the homes of the offenders, they were not always there to have the warrants served to them.
“They may be deceased, they may have moved away or something. The officers go by the basic information that is provided to them. Sometimes, the offenders do not provide the correct information,” she said.
The amnesty program officially began Monday as the CPD began stepping up efforts to collect old fines from misdemeanors ranging from simple assault to contempt of court and domestic violence.
St. John again emphasized that if a person with an unpaid fine comes to the police department to pay their fine, he or she will receive amnesty.
“You can still come to the station and pay your fine, and you will get amnesty. The amnesty remains in effect through April 30,” he said.
If you pay your fine, your contempt of court will be retired to the files, but you will also have to pay a $100 fine for court costs, he said.
Songer said officers would be out in force early today, from early morning and into the night.
“We also plan to have them out on Saturday as well,” she said.
Songer said the short-term goal is to have a group of officers on warrant detail going out once a week to serve warrants for those who do not come by to pay.
“This will go on through April 30,” she said.
Songer said so far the warrants are being served to the offenders at their homes, but the department does not plan to stop there.
“If we know where they are working, we will go there,” she said.
Allen Baswell was previously a reporter for The Dispatch.
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