INDEPENDENCE - Kenton Judge-executive Clyde Middleton is enlisting a statewide association of county governments to address problems behind the backlog of arrest warrants in Kentucky's third-largest county.
After Tuesday's fiscal court meeting, Mr. Middleton said he has asked the Kentucky Association of Counties (KACo), based in Frankfort, to help draw attention to the problem.
That follows a call by Chief District Judge Marty Sheehan for the General Assembly to settle which elected officials are responsible for maintaining a countywide system of warrants and serving them. The judge blamed the warrant problems on
loopholes left from when the statewide judicial system was created in 1978 to take over
local judicial courts.
''What Sheehan said in his letter is exactly what I said when this whole thing came up,'' said Mr. Middleton, who was a state senator at the time the constitutional amendment creating the current system was created.
In many of those cases, county governments have been forced to pay for what the state didn't, he has said. Mr. Middleton said he hopes that KACo will help convince the General Assembly that the problem is broader than Kenton County
alone.
KACo represents the interests of Kentucky's counties in Frankfort and is supported by dues from the county governments. It also offers technical assistance to county governments, such as drafting model ordinances and interpreting state law and regulations.
A KACo official declined to comment on the issue Tuesday, saying the association is still collecting information on the problem.
Kenton County has an estimated 9,000 unserved warrants for a variety of offenses, such as contempt and failure to appear in court or pay fines. Complicating matters, Kentucky law does not specify who is responsible for tracking people down. Sheriff Bill Steenken has been criticized for his insistence that Kenton County's outstanding warrants are not a problem.
The Enquirer reported in December that there was no concerted effort to resolve Kenton County's backlog of unserved warrants. Since then, local police departments, led by County Police Chief Mike Browning, and prosecutors have worked together to attack the list.
Previous stories
Sloppy warrant law cited Feb. 21, 1997.
Vague laws frustrate police Feb. 18, 1997.
Boone, Campbell focus on big backlog Feb. 16, 1997.
Kenton Co. sheriff cancels 2nd shift Feb. 13, 1997.
Warrants backlog burgeons Feb. 8, 1997.
Searchers will have updated suspect list Jan. 15, 1997.
Chief organizes warrant search Jan. 5, 1997.
Kenton to focus on most wanted Dec. 26, 1996
Warrant backlog worse in Boone, Campbell Dec. 22, 1996
Kenton police chief proposes special unit Dec. 19, 1996
Sheriff pulls deputies off FBI team Dec. 18, 1996
Lawmakers want answer to unserved warrants Dec. 17, 1996
4,200 unserved warrants in Kenton County Dec. 15, 1996
