North Las Vegas amnesty program helps residents clear fines

One month into an unpaid tickets amnesty program, the North Las Vegas Municipal Court has helped about 1,500 residents pay debts totaling about $500,000, court officials say.

The court is offering a 50 percent reduction on total fines for qualifying cases for a limited time, although no end date has been set, said court administrator Debbie Miller.

The amnesty program kicked off Jan. 18, and about 1,500 traffic or misdemeanor infraction offenders have settled their cases with the court. The violation fees have brought in about $500,000 for the court. A similar program conducted in 2011 netted about $800,000, Miller said.

Fines bring in about $10 million in revenue a year in North Las Vegas, Miller said.

Court officials selected this time of year for residents to make good on any "fresh start" resolutions or to spend tax refund funds wisely, Miller said.

"It's been pretty successful so far," she said.

The program has incentive to all parties, she added.

"Really, the bottom line is we want people to fulfill their obligations to the court," Miller said. "A fine isn't a punishment if it's not collected. If we aren't collecting the fines owed to us, we aren't seeing the compliance rates."

As economic conditions soured, Miller said the court saw reductions in case compliance.

"We have people on even $25-a-month payments, and it's taking them forever to pay off their fines," she said.

Unlike past years, the discount is available to all unpaid tickets pending qualification.

Offenders with unfinished classes attached to their infractions, such as traffic, drunken driving or domestic violence cases, must complete the courses before utilizing the amnesty incentive, Miller said.

Cases in warrant status are also eligible to pay at the reduced rate.

A nearby jurisdiction said amnesty programs or postponed payment plans don't solve the problem.

"We found moratoriums to have the opposite effect," said city of Las Vegas court spokeswoman Jill Christensen.

The last amnesty program conducted by the court system was in 2007, she said, and defendants didn't utilize the deal or became more careless about settling their fines or warrants.

In lieu of discounts, Christensen said a separate window is devoted to those whose cases have moved to warrant status. Specifically trained clerks work one on one with individuals to hammer out payment plans or set up work programs to settle their civic debts, she said.

"It's an obligation on the part of the person," she said. "They've broken the law, and there is a consequence to that."

For more information on the North Las Vegas Municipal Court program, call 633-2929.

Contact Centennial and North Las Vegas View reporter Maggie Lillis at mlillis@viewnews.com or 477-3839.