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Offenders To Pay For Time Officials Spend On Cases

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By LISA A. DAVIS

The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 31, 2008

NEW PORT RICHEY - The saying "Don't do the crime if you can't do the time" needs an addendum for offenders in Pasco County. Something like "Crime makes you pay."

In this instance, it's the convicted criminals who will be handing over the money - to cover the investigative costs of their cases.

Beginning Sunday, the Pasco County Sheriff's Office is implementing an Investigative Costs Recovery Program. When someone is convicted of a crime, including criminal traffic offenses such as driving under the influence, prosecutors will ask a judge to impose a bill for the wages of those who investigated the case.

Similarly, criminals for years have been ordered to pay court costs, including public defender fees, if they haven't hired an attorney.

As a matter of fairness, sheriff's office internal auditor Karen Oruwariye said, the Investigative Costs Recovery Program will charge the hourly wage of a new deputy, even if a higher-paid detective handled the case. If forensic investigators are required, the offender will pay those costs, too, she said.

For example, if one deputy making $26 an hour works on the case for 10 hours, the bill would be $260. If five hours of forensics work is needed, at $18 an hour, that would be an additional $90.

"We feel like the criminals should have to pay for it," Oruwariye said.

The money will go through the Clerk of the Circuit Court's Office back to the sheriff's office to offset operational costs, she added.

"It's not going to be a windfall or anything, but you do what you can," Oruwariye said.

Recovery costs have been allowed by Florida statute for years, but it was about a year ago when Pasco Detective Abe Carmack asked his agency to take advantage of it, said sheriff's office spokesman Kevin Doll.

The new program comes at a time when counties are cutting budgets and Sheriff Bob White says he's operating his agency at a bare minimum of funding.

"The additional funding generated through this program will be especially important considering the challenge that we will be facing in the coming budget year," White wrote in a memo to agency personnel Thursday.

The sheriff on Friday released his fiscal year 2008-09 budget request of just shy of $85 million. County commissioners will use that as a starting point during budget negotiations this summer.

In preparing for the new recovery program, the sheriff's office held 20 sessions to teach deputies and forensics investigators how to track and document hours for each case they work. A new arrest affidavit was created to add a section labeled "Request for Investigative Costs Recovery," where deputies will calculate the amount the convict should pay.

The request must be documented from the get-go, and it's not automatic.

Pasco has modeled its program after the one in place for more than a decade at the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office. That agency annually collects about $230,000 in investigative costs, spokeswoman Marianne Pasha said.

The Pasco sheriff's office isn't the only government entity in the county to consider a creative way to offset costs. In March, the Port Richey City Council voted unanimously to charge at-fault nonresidents for time and materials related to traffic accidents within city limits.

Reporter Lisa A. Davis can be reached at (727) 815-1083 or ldavis@tampatrib.com.

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