Skipping court could put your face online

[PonderThis]

http://www.ktvl.com/articles/court-12009...-date.html



Excerpt: "If you miss your court date at the Josephine County Courthouse your mugshot could end up online.

Your name, birth date and the crime you're being charged with all on the Josephine County Sheriff’s Office website for anyone with the Internet to see.

“If you don't want to show up in court, I’ve got room in the jail,” said Sheriff Gil Gilbertson. “I'll find room for you and we'll hold you until you see a judge.”

The sheriff's office is putting failure to appear warrants on its website to save county taxpayers money.

If you don't show up to court in Grants Pass, it costs taxpayers around $800 in court operation costs, deputies salaries and attorney fees.

In the past weeks, eight have ditched their court dates.

It all started in 2006 when Josephine County started making the warrants public through a newsletter. Now it’s going high-tech and Sheriff Gilbertson said so far it’s working.

In the last five years the warrants have gone down 57 percent.

In 2006, there were more than 3,000 failure to appear warrants which cost taxpayers $2.4 million in court fees and deputy time. In 2008, there were 1,350 costing just over $1 million.

So far this year there have been 775.

“We learned of this type of publication from Klamath County,” said Erin Maue with the Josephine County Sheriff’s Office. “What they do is they actually have a print publication and as a result they have a lot of failure to appear warrant subjects turn themselves in because they don't want their face out there.”

But not everyone thinks it's such a good idea.

“I think it's ridiculous,” Grants Pass resident Patti Benoit said. “I don’t think they should go that far. I really, really don't. I can see America's Most Wanted, but for minute little things? No.”

Sheriff Gilbertson said if you don't like it, don’t break the law.

“The whole thing behind this is I don't want you to commit the crimes,” he said. “If you don't want to stay in our jail then fine. But don't commit the crimes.”

[hillclimber]

If you don't show up to court in Grants Pass, it costs taxpayers around $800 in court operation costs, deputies salaries and attorney fees.

I'd like to see the accounting on this statement.

[Scrapper]

If you don't show up to court in Grants Pass, it costs taxpayers around $800 in court operation costs, deputies salaries and attorney fees.

I'd like to see the accounting on this statement.

Good gawd, dude... how much do you think it might cost for the courtroom with power, etc.; the Judge's time; the attorney's time; the other court peep's time, etc. etc. etc?!?!?!?!?!?

HINT: It ain't cheap, dude!

I would guess that $800 is on the light side.

[hillclimber]

If you don't show up to court in Grants Pass, it costs taxpayers around $800 in court operation costs, deputies salaries and attorney fees.

I'd like to see the accounting on this statement.

Good gawd, dude... how much do you think it might cost for the courtroom with power, etc.; the Judge's time; the attorney's time; the other court peep's time, etc. etc. etc?!?!?!?!?!?

HINT: It ain't cheap, dude!

I would guess that $800 is on the light side.

good gawd dude-ette.. I know it's not cheap.. My query goes to how did they arrive at that figure... An accounting....

[chuck white]

They would have to add up the cost of each court personel, including those who support the courts janitorial service etc, also the amount spend on electricity and other utilities. next the amount spend to pay the bonds used to build the court rooms, divided by the case load in defended hours. actually those who show up for court probably cost a lot more because they use more of the courts time. no shows are handled very fast. So thye maybe costing $800 dollars but are saving us ten times that amount.

[hillclimber]

I'm wondering if this may be a precursor to trying to charge accused people with court costs, whether they show or not... The Sheriff already charges inmates, for their stay (I think). I hope that is not the case, but, in any case:

I believe that all these costs are a societal responsibility, and should not be included in any penalty.

[PonderThis]

It used to be that you could demand a jury trial for traffic tickets, and back in my heavy ticket-getting days I used to automatically do that with every ticket. It costs them so much money to bring in a jury for a measly traffic ticket that I got several tickets dismissed that way instead. Finally they called my bluff and really made me have a jury trial for one of them. After they found me guilty the judge warned me if they ever had to do that again for me with a jury trial it would be "very tempting" for him to fine me what it actually cost them to try me.

They changed that law shortly thereafter, I think that was in the '70's. You can't get a jury trial now for a court case unless a court conviction could actually land you in jail now (and traffic court penalties are mostly civil instead).