50 Report To Jefferson County Fairgrounds To Resolve Outstanding Warrants

GOLDEN, Colo. (CBS4) -- One person flew in from Maryland.

One drove from Aspen.

Another couple drove all night from Idaho and slept in the parking lot.

Dozens of people showed up a week ago at the Jefferson County Fairgrounds to deal with outstanding warrants. Traffic offenses, probation violations, non-violent misdemeanors qualified.

Some of them simply restarted their journey through the judicial process and made a court date. Some resumed their probation. Others had their cases resolved entirely.

It was the debut of Fresh Start, a program spear-headed by the 1st Judicial District Attorney's Office that represents Gilpin and Jefferson county cases.

The agency told CBS4 that 50 people took advantage.

"A team of our prosecutors – including elected DA Alexis King – volunteered their time for this because it's the right thing to do and a common-sense solution for everyone involved," said Jennifer Kilpatrick, Director of Conviction Integrity & Equity for the DA's Office. "Programs like Fresh Start make our community safer, save taxpayer dollars and help people who want to accept accountability for minor offenses get their lives back on track."

Support resources were on hand as well, according to a spokesman for the DA's Office, Michael Teague. Twenty bus passes were issued, 13 vaccines administered, and 28 referrals were made to community programs specializing in housing, health care, food benefits, mental health and substance abuse.

Teague said the man who flew in from Maryland had turned his life around, completed school, and was starting a job with a Fortune 500 company.

The couple from Idaho made the trek to take care of a warrant from a 2014 case.

And, Teague added, firefighters with the West Metro Fire Department saw a man in a wheelchair trying to get to the event and provided him with a ride.

These types of programs are relatively new. Boulder began its "Fresh Start" in the spring of 2019. Weld County is currently publishing its first attempt at warrant resolution called "Operation Reset."

JeffCo's Teague said the opportunity to resolve lower-level warrants makes the community safer by allowing law enforcement and prosecutors to focus on those offenders who are committing more serious crimes.

Offenders with DUIs or felonies do not qualify for the warrant resolution programs.