Yuma court offers amnesty for failing to appear

YUMA (3TV/CBS 5) — The Yuma municipal court is offering amnesty for those with outstanding warrants. People who take advantage of the program will not be arrested. Instead, they will be given a court date to appear in front of a judge for amnesty court.

Yolanda Cabrera, the deputy court administrator, said there is a backlog of 1,300 cases, and most of the cases are people who received a citation and failed to appear in court. The amnesty court program will dismiss the charge for failing to appear in court, but people will still have to deal with their original charges.

The amnesty program is aimed at helping relieve people from the worry of law enforcement showing up unannounced, as well as, for example, being out in public for fear they would be taken into custody while someone is depending on them for care.

The municipal court realizes some people may fear getting arrested, which is why they’ve set up an outside window where people can see the office clerk without having to go inside the building. “It’s to build the public’s trust in the justice system,” Cabrera said. “We’re not just there to punish people, but get people back on track with their cases.”

People with outstanding warrants have until October 13 to take part in the program. The court’s website says to show up to the Yuma Municipal Court at 1515 S. 2nd Avenue, Monday through Friday between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., to get an appearance date for Amnesty Court. For more information, you can visit the program’s website linked here.

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