Municipal Court Judge Nancy Thomas is ready to deal. People who owe the City of Vicksburg about 7,000 fines totalling $3 million can avoid contempt warrants — which can lead to additional fines and penalties — if they agree to get on a payment schedule or sign up for community service.

The Vicksburg Board of Mayor and Aldermen approved the approach to collecting past-due amounts Monday.

Thomas, previously city attorney, told the board the fines are for such offenses as traffic tickets and shoplifting.

The fines are logged in police computers so that whenever a records check is run, the amounts due appear. That creates a secondary problem, she said. People who owe money are afraid to cooperate with police investigations because they know they have outstanding warrants for nonpayment and face arrest.

“So what we’re trying to do is encourage people to voluntarily come down to the municipal court clerk’s office and take care of their past-due fines so that they will not be arrested and have additional fines for contempt of court stacked on top,” Thomas said. “We’ll work with them. They can make arrangements to pay their fines in installments if they don’t have the cash or they can sign up for community service.”

When police encounter a person who owes a past-due fine, the effect of the warrant is immediate arrest and detention until a cash bond is posted. The arrests do not help the situation at the 128-bed Warren County Jail, which is already perpetually full with pretrial detainees, said Thomas. Vicksburg uses the jail in Issaquena County for overflow, spending at least $400 per year in per diem payments plus the cost of transportation.

“We’re not interested in arresting people for contempt of court if they will voluntarily come in and take care of their fines,” said Thomas. “We need to get these (warrants) cleared out.” 

The grace period for those who make arrangements to pay or perform community service, such as picking up litter, will last through March 31, 2010. However, those with outstanding warrants who do not contact the court will still face arrest, said Thomas.

“We will not pull the warrant until they come in voluntarily,” she said. “If they don’t come in and the police come across them and call in and find out there’s a warrant out for their arrest, they’re going to be arrested.”

Some of the past due fines date back to as far as 1996, Thomas said. The number of unpaid fines has hovered around the 7,000 mark for years, she added.

Mayor Paul Winfield encouraged those with outstanding fines and warrants to take advantage of the city’s offer to avoid arrest and even more fines.

“Do what’s right and take care of your business the way you’re supposed to,” he said.

Vicksburg operates on a budget of about $30 million per year, so the past-due amounts amount to about 10 percent of the city’s operating funds. Earlier this year, Warren County supervisors approached a similar shortfall by hiring a collections agency.

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Contact Steve Sanoski at ssanoski@vicksburgpost.com