Latest news with #FailuretoAppear
Yahoo
18-03-2025
- Yahoo
Opelika court forgiveness offers rare chance to resolve FTA warrant, avoid arrest
OPELIKA, Ala. (WRBL) – Individuals with outstanding Failure to Appear (FTA) warrants in Opelika have a rare opportunity to resolve their cases without the risk of arrest. Opelika Municipal Court is once again offering its Court Forgiveness Program, which runs through March 31, to help residents avoid financial and legal burdens associated with missed court dates. Municipal Court Judge Ben Hand, who has served Opelika for 16 years, says the program is designed to give people a chance to clear their warrants and move forward. 'I like to give them the benefit of the doubt. I want to see them prove themselves. I like to see somebody make an effort to make themselves better. If you get stopped by a police officer, there's nothing I can do for you at that point,' Hand explained. 'But if you come here voluntarily and bring your ID, there's a lot I can do to help you out.' The program allows individuals with FTA warrants to come to Opelika Municipal Court with identification and have their warrant withdrawn on the spot. They will still need to address the original citation or offense, but the additional fines and penalties for missing court will be dismissed. 'What we are trying to do is help people out through the month of March,' Hand said. 'We have 2,000 FTA cases, and our goal is to clear 20 to 25 percent of them through this program.' An FTA warrant is issued when a person fails to appear in court for a scheduled hearing, even for minor offenses like unpaid traffic tickets. If an individual is stopped by law enforcement while an FTA warrant is active, officers are required to make an arrest, which can lead to: Additional fines Court costs Jail time A required cash bond to be released 'It's a nightmare,' Hand said. 'You could have just forgotten about your ticket or put it on your dashboard and missed the date. But once that FTA is issued, if a police officer pulls you over, they are obligated to arrest you.' Judge Hand acknowledges some people are skeptical about the program. 'At first, they thought it was a trick—that we were just trying to throw people in jail,' he said. 'But then they realized, no, it's not a trick. We really are trying to help folks out.' This is the second time Opelika has offered the Court Forgiveness Program, with the first session clearing up 17 percent of outstanding cases. To take advantage of the Court Forgiveness Program, individuals must: Visit Opelika Municipal Court at 300 MLK Boulevard Bring a valid ID Resolve the original ticket or violation Failure to take advantage of this program means individuals remain at risk of arrest and additional costs if they come into contact with law enforcement. 'If an FTA warrant is holding you up because you're worried about going to jail, come on up and get it off the books,' Hand urged. 'We'll work with you on payment plans, schooling, or community service, so it doesn't put you in a financial bind.' The program runs through March 31. For more information, visit call Opelika Municipal Court at 334-705-5196. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
05-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Arkansas Sheriff's Association head explains support for proposed prison
Video: Controversy stirring over new state prison coming to Franklin County LITTLE ROCK, Ark . – The Arkansas Sheriff's Association executive director gave several reasons why his organization has been calling for a new state prison for years but said it ultimately came down to one essential thing. 'Our misdemeanor justice system is broken,' Scott Bradley said. A former Van Buren County sheriff, Bradley heads up the organization representing sheriffs in the 75 Arkansas counties. Controversy stirring over new state prison coming to Franklin County Bradley explained that the state-wide problem is a lack of capacity and everything that falls from that. The beginning of the problem is that as of Tuesday, the 71 county detention facilities throughout the state are holding 1,952 state inmates, beds that are not available for county needs. He explained that those inmates ultimately move through the system, but not as fast as needed to meet capacity, even after the Department of Corrections recently opened up roughly 1,500 additional beds. He explained that a county sheriff has to maintain the capacity of his jail. This means that inmates have to be released to make room for state inmates and, in some cases, federal inmates, along with county inmates charged with violent crimes being held on bond. This leads to misdemeanor arrests being released on recognizance (OR), meaning without bond and with the expectation they will appear for their court date. Sadly, Bradley said, this is often not the case, and where the misdemeanor just system breaks down as Arkansas has thousands of Failure to Appear (FTA) warrants on file. Arkansas Dept. of Corrections outlines new budget toward Franklin County prison plan He gave the example of a person released OR who now has an FTA and moved to another county to avoid detection. The same person has a run-in with law enforcement in that county, resulting in a misdemeanor charge, and that agency calls the originating agency and is told they can not pick up that inmate to bring them back to the original county because they do not have room in the county detention center. Because it is a misdemeanor and the second detention center is also crowded, that suspect is released OR again and does not appear for their court date, is assigned an FTA warrant, moves to another county, and the cycle begins again. 'We have people out there with seven or eight FTA warrants,' Bradley said. Bradley said the cycle becomes self-perpetuating. Because the person can continue getting away with misdemeanor violations, they ultimately 'graduate' to a felony crime, he said. They are caught, go to court, are given a state prison sentence, and held at the county level until a bed opens up. Because of this a misdemeanor offender will not spend a possibly rehabilitating night in jail due to lack of space. Legislation for $750 million new prison funding filed in Arkansas legislature Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders has been pushing to construct a 3,000-bed $825 million prison in Franklin County to alleviate the county jail backlog. Sen. Bryan King (R-Green Forest) has proposed alternative programs, including the state partnering with county jails to build additional capacity there instead of a stand-alone state prison, citing cost. A $750 million funding package for the Franklin County prison is due for debate in the legislature's Joint Budget Committee during the current legislative session. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
