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** Please visit our website: http://www.africanassociation.org **
Unpaid Tickets? Plan Lets You Work It Off
By Associated Press
April 4, 2005, 5:49 PM EDT
PAPILLION, Neb. -- A new program in Sarpy County allows some motorists who
fail to pay traffic fines to work off their debt by performing duties in the
city's parks, golf courses and recreation areas.
The Offender Work Program, which will start this month, will initially
involve 10 to 20 offenders in Papillion, the county seat. If the program
proves successful, officials hope to expand it to other Sarpy County cities.
There is about $300,000 in unpaid traffic fines on the books in Sarpy County
courts.
Papillion Mayor James Blinn said offenders will be put to work on projects
that require a large group of manual laborers, such as picking up roadside
trash or dog droppings at parks.
There is a similar program in Omaha that puts offenders to work in the city
public works and recreation departments picking up litter, sweeping and
shoveling sidewalks and removing graffiti.
Deputy Sarpy County Attorney Marc Delman said offenders who have been
convicted of violent crimes or sexual offenses would not be allowed to
participate in the program. Efforts would target offenders who lack the
financial means to pay the fines, he said. Speeding fines can sometimes
exceed $200, plus court costs. Offenders would get $60 credit for each day
worked.
The program also will give judges an alternative to jail sentences for
people who can't pay the fines, Blinn said.
"This way you don't take up jail space and get work done around the city,"
he said.
Copyright 2005 Newsday Inc.
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