Outstanding Warrants&ndash;Pinellas County Uses Social Media to Hunt Those Wanted

The public has long had a fascination with the topic of outstanding arrest warrants. This interest has no doubt been fueled by television and the movies with such themes as “The Fugitive,” “Wanted Dead or Alive,” “Dragnet,” “America’s Most Wanted,” and “Dog: The Bounty Hunter.” Of course, when the warrant is for your own arrest, the matter takes on a far more serious role.

During Budget Cuts No One Was Looking for Pinellas Fugitives

In 2009, over 600 jobs had been eliminated in Pinellas county. A whopping $108 million dollars was cut from the budget. Much was made about the controversial budget cutbacks that had caused a temporary closure to the sheriff’s bureau of deputies who had previously been assigned to the “fugitive section.” See: Experts question Pinellas’ decision to ditch fugitive-tracking unit. There was nobody assigned to look for individuals with outstanding warrants. Sheriff Bob Gualtieri took the position that his road deputies could handle the warrants. That could be interpreted to mean that if a Deputy happened upon a motorist with an outstanding warrant, the driver would be taken into custody. However. in the last election for Sheriff,the unexecuted outstanding Pinellas county arrest warrants developed into a campaign issue when candidates Scott Swope and Everette Rice argued that the incumbent Sheriff was not doing enough to locate fugitives.

New Warrant Unit Determined to Find You

With more than 55,000 outstanding arrest warrants, Gualterieri was forced to not only reinstate the “Warrants Unit,” but in his words “take it to another level.” See Video: Pinellas Sheriff Gualtieri Brings Back Warrant Unit. Since April 2013, several thousand warrants have been served. The Sheriff’s Office prides itself on becoming “tech savvy’ in locating individuals who are wanted for outstanding warrants. Plus, the detectives who were selected for the new unit were chosen because of their skills associated with social media and clues that could be uncovered via the Internet. The new Warrants unit cost Pinellas tax payers roughly $400,000 per year and is headed up by Sgt. Bryan Bingham who recently received a promotion.

What Steps They Are Now Taking to Locate You

The warrants team has received training in the use of databases and the entire Warrants department has recently implemented a computerized “case management” system. These efforts have been put into place to insure that no one with an outstanding warrant “slips through the cracks.” Here are a few of the new tactics being employed:

Searching Facebook for wanted individuals or their family/friends;
Searching private & public databases;
Conducting surveillance in surreptitious ways, such as by video cameras, foot or bicycle - as opposed to marked cruisers;
Coordinating efforts with the Pinellas State Attorneys Office

Many users of Facebook, MySpace, online social websites or blogs are of the mistaken belief that their site or posts are “private.” Our office is getting calls from individuals seeking help because the warrant section has located them through these social media outlets. We are increasingly finding that clients have an irresistible urge to interact through the Internet and that is unintentionally placing them in a “high profile” status. See: Be Careful What You Do or Say – It Can Come Back to Haunt You.

You Need a Strategy!

You could benefit from a significant tactical advantage by having the lawyers in our office take action while the warrant is still active. Getting arrested on an outstanding warrant is often untimely and embarrassing. Let’s deal with the warrant on your timetable so you can quit looking over your shoulder. You can earn credibility and show the proper attitude to the court system by taking a proactive approach. Let us help you by intervening with the State Attorneys Office and the Court system while you are still in a bargaining position of strength.

At Russo & Russo, we are Pinellas Criminal Defense Lawyers Experienced With Outstanding Arrest Warrants.
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