"Beloit Public Library director said when books aren't returned, the library sends three overdue notices. After the third notice, a citation is sent that could include court date.
[The library patron] said she was in the process of moving so she never got the notices. When a police officer pulled her over for a traffic violation in November, the officer found out about her outstanding warrant and took her to jail. She and her family couldn't afford to pay her fine so she remained in jail for six days."
I'm speechless.
Update: I found an article that does a pretty good job of giving the library's side here.
The Beloit Public Library sends three overdue notices at two weeks late, four weeks late and six weeks late, said library director Dan Zack. After a third and final notice, a citation is sent, which includes a mandatory court date, or some kind of action.
The municipal fine that Givhan says she never saw included $172 in court fees and another $159 in restitution from the library for the items that were not returned, said Zack.
Notices were sent to Givhan to no avail, Zack said. And when court appearances were missed in March, April and June of last year, a warrant was issued.
Hmm...
3 comments:
Wow. I wonder how much the fine was? It just seems like there's some missing information in here somewhere....
I"m going to keep tabs on this to see if any more details come to light. I'd like to think she went through the shame and fear of spending six days in jail for a better reason than a $20 fine.
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