Judge gives six-month amnesty
People with outstanding warrants in the state's 404th District Court have until Feb. 1 to resolve issues or face being held without bond, said Judge Elia Cornejo Lopez.
"If they come voluntarily to the court I will work with them and give them a bond," Cornejo said. "If we have to come get you I will hold you with no bond."
During the summer Cornejo and her staff compiled a list of 522 people who have pending criminal cases in her court. The cases go back to 1987 and involve people who missed court dates and have not been heard from since.
All the names on the list are named in court issued arrest warrants. To clear the cases, Cornejo has set up round-up operations with the Brownsville and San Benito police departments and with the Cameron County Sheriff’s Department. However, before commencing the roundup, Cornejo wants to give those named in the warrants another chance through the amnesty program.
"Some of the people affected by these crimes have not seen justice," Cornejo said. "Basically we are trying to clear these up so that justice can be done."
The amount of the bonds will depend on the severity of the crimes; however, those who don’t comply face detention without bond regardless of the crimes, Cornejo said.
"I have one case that’s a check without funds. I have some third-time DWIs," Cornejo said. "Again, if they come in and tell the bailiff that they have a case here and take the steps to take care of it, they get a bond. If they need to be brought in they will be held until their case is done."
The judge’s amnesty comes from a willingness to clear out the 522 cases, some of which may be misunderstandings.
"It happens sometimes," Cornejo said. "There might have been a misunderstanding between that person and their attorney and they might have missed their court appointment and not known about it. Also, the person might have moved and not received correspondence from the court. For all we know that person might have gotten divorced and their spouse simply did not inform them of the court date."
Since cases date back to the late 1980s, some of the parties named in the list might have passed away.
"In that case, all we need is for a family member to bring us their death certificate so we can clear the case," Cornejo said.
Noteworthy cases pending in the court include Javier Soto, who has been wanted by the court since 1999 on the charge of murder; Carlos Santiago, 27, wanted on the charge of aggravated sexual assault of a child since 2001; and Marcelino Saucedo Rocha, 23, wanted on the charge of aggravated sexual assault of a child since 2008.
A complete list of those with pending matters at the 404th District Court have until Feb. 1 to resolve issues or face being held without bond, said Judge Elia Cornejo Lopez.
People with outstanding warrants in the state’s 404th District Court can be found at HERE.
