St. Louis’ Municipal Court is hosting a warrant amnesty program Feb. 24-27. It’s an opportunity for people with outstanding bench warrants — excluding DUIs, leaving the scene of an accident and prostitution — to be able to pay their original fines and costs without penalty.
There are nearly 119,000 outstanding warrants in the city of St. Louis, meaning thousands of people are at risk of going to jail.
Judge Newton McCoy is an administrative judge with the St. Louis Municipal Court. He says that during the amnesty period, some old cases may even be dismissed that same day.
“We don’t want to create a situation where there’s no way for them to get themselves into a position where they’re in compliance,” he said. “When you hold onto some of those old cases, it makes it harder.”
Last year, the city’s municipal court canceled 6,945 warrants for 1,601 people seeking amnesty. In addition, the court disposed of 1,120 cases.
On Thursday’s St. Louis on the Air, guest host Emily Woodbury spoke with McCoy about the program.
Hear their conversation:
Related Event
What: City of St. Louis Municipal Courts Warrant Amnesty Program
When: 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Feb. 24-26, 2020; 7 a.m.-7 p.m. Feb. 27, 2020
Where: St. Louis City Municipal Court (1520 Market St., St. Louis, MO 63103; enter through the 16th Street side of the building)
“St. Louis on the Air” brings you the stories of St. Louis and the people who live, work and create in our region. The show is hosted by Sarah Fenske and produced by Alex Heuer, Emily Woodbury, Evie Hemphill, Lara Hamdan and Joshua Phelps. The engineer is Aaron Doerr, and production assistance is provided by Charlie McDonald.
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