SAN ANTONIO – The start of the 9th-annual Statewide Warrant Roundup kicked off on Monday, and San Antonio police, along with the Municipal Court Marshal Unit, are looking for people with active, outstanding warrants.
This year, local authorities are looking to clear about 300,000 active warrants, all stemming from Class C offenses, such as speeding tickets, traffic violations, or misdemeanors.
"We want to try and clear out as many warrants as we can," said San Antonio Police Chief Anthony Trevino. "It may seem like it's only a Class C misdemeanor, but it's still something that we need to make sure that we're actively enforcing as an organization and as a city, to make sure that we're holding people accountable for their actions."
The round-up follows a two-week grace period already provided by the city, where individuals could clear their warrants without penalty, but chose not to. Trevino estimates about 16,000 warrants were cleared during that time.
"Most of the people we stop, in dealing with these warrants, are really nice and just (a) normal person," said Troy Cook, one of the officers with the Marshal Unit. "But you never know what you're going to run into out here."
As part of the roundup, there are about 15 dedicated officers on the lookout for offenders over the next week, and Trevino said police are willing to go to a person's home, work, or place of business to make an arrest.
"There's never a good time to go to jail, so it's best to come in (and) try to take care of the warrant on your own terms, rather than wait for an officer to come looking for you," Trevino said.
As for the money generated as a result of clearing these warrants, Trevino admitted there is a benefit for the city, but did not specify how much.