Marshal's Office Rounding Up Suspects With Family Violence Warrants
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DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - Officials with the Dallas City Marshal's Office are out rounding up suspects wanted on domestic violence warrants.
Deputies fanned out early this morning looking for offenders with outstanding warrants. Chief Deputy Marshal Paul Hansen explained the process once deputies locate their suspect. "If we find you at your home or business we will make the arrest. So, we'll take you into custody, bring you to the city detention center and at some point you'll see a city magistrate."
Hansen said the individuals being taken into custody are people who have ignored notices to appear in court to face the charges against them. "We really want to get people who have these outstanding cases to go to court, to go see a judge, to do that voluntarily and adjudicate these cases," he said. "But if they're unwilling to do so… these warrants are outstanding, they need to be served and our deputies will go out and make the arrests."
While the goal of the roundup is to catch suspected and admitted criminals and force them into court, Hansen said the crackdown is being done for the injured parties as well. "We also want the victims to feel like that something is being done to adjudicate the cases and that the offender is answerable to these charges."
Chief Hansen says technological advances -- such as automatic license plate readers and electronic ticket writers -- make it much easier for officers to find and arrest people with outstanding warrants.
The Dallas Marshal's Officials plans to concentrate on making domestic violence arrests throughout the month, but violators don't have to wait in fear for a knock at the door. Defendants who want to resolve their cases voluntarily can go to the Dallas Municipal Court, located at 2014 Main Street, or make payment at the Marshal's Office at 1600 Chestnut.
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