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Warrant worries? Go directly to church
YOUNGSTOWN
People living in Mahoning County hampered by an active warrant and constantly worried about when law enforcement will knock on their doors can remove that anxiety this week.
Ohio Attorney General Mike Dewine’s office, in conjunction with the Mahoning County Sheriff’s Office and other county police departments and support agencies, will host Operation Safe Surrender from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday at First Presbyterian Church on Wick Avenue at East Wood Street.
Operation Safe Surrender offers individuals with felony and misdemeanor warrants the ability to surrender to law enforcement and have their case adjudicated, typically at a community church.
DeWine, who initiated the program, has said he believes a “faith-based atmosphere” makes it easier for those named in warrants to surrender.
The Mahoning County Clerk of Courts office has listed all those eligible to participate in the Safe Surrender program on its website at http://courts.mahoningcountyoh.gov.
Sgt. Mike Fonda of the sheriff’s office said it is difficult to determine how many people will take part in the program, but he is hoping for a large turnout.
“We have been meeting and planning behind the scenes for months to make this happen, and we are ready to get it rolling,” he said. “We hope we are jam packed and can have three successful days.”
Youngstown Clerk of Courts Sarah Brown-Clark said her office is ready to handle however many people surrender.
“We are prepared and ready to implement the program,” she said.
A similar Safe Surrender event took place in July in Trumbull and Columbiana counties.
“There are a number of reasons why this is important,” Fonda said. “There are thousands of warrants in the system and most can be dealt with quickly if the [person] is present. Many people are just afraid to come in.”
The process is quick and simple. The individual comes to the church and is first taken to a staging area to make sure the warrant is still valid. The individual is then processed and appears before a judge who is on site.
Fonda said the objective is not to send people to jail, but help clear up old and outstanding warrants and get people, who may have been hindered from doing certain things because of the warrant, back on the right track.
“We want people to understand that during this Operation Safe Surrender, we are going to have people from different agencies to help people turn their lives around,” Fonda added. “The whole idea is not to send people to jail, but to help people get over whatever little lump is in their lives and get back on track. ... The real winners in this are the people who show up and get these things taken care of.”