Tampa Bay Criminal Defense Lawyer - Tampa warrant round up nabs 100s!

By Nicholas Dorsten, Esq.

From the Times online site, a warrant round up in Tampa nabs a bunch of wanted suspects...

TAMPA — Thousands of Tampa crime suspects live freely despite outstanding arrest warrants against them. For months, years — sometimes decades — they elude police, wanted for crimes as terrible as murder.

And the Mayor wants that to end.

On Tuesday, Tampa police launched what they say is the biggest warrant roundup in the department's history.

With nearly 6,000 outstanding warrants on the list, the police department's first action was to execute 459 violent felony warrants, including eight for murder.

By late afternoon, police had arrested 33 people. Another 39 warrants were cleared because the suspects are either dead or in prison. The roundup continues through Friday. Meanwhile, the warrants are for a variety of crimes, from grand theft to drug trafficking to murder.

At dawn, officers participating in the operation gathered in a Sulphur Springs parking lot. They donned tactical vests, aware of the danger they faced. Two of the recent fatal police shootings in the bay area happened during warrant arrests.

"These (wanted) individuals have nothing to lose," the police Chief said. "They certainly don't want to go back to jail."

But one question lingered: Why are violent felons — murder suspects, especially — not already behind bars? Aren't they priority cases?

It is noted that the 459 outstanding felony warrants — some that date to the 1970s — make up less than 1 percent of the Tampa police's yearly arrests. It's a small fraction that gets away.

The outstanding warrants don't exist for lack of trying, said a police spokeswoman. Police often spend weeks visiting various addresses where a subject is known to stay.

Sometimes the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force also gets involved right away, especially if the suspect is in another county or state.

When police efforts fail, an officer sends the suspect's information to the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office, which has a warrants division with 12 detectives who work exclusively on tracking down the wanted.

They scour databases to find addresses associated with the subject.

Then they interview neighbors, family and friends, picking up clues.

"It's hard to run forever," said a sheriff's Master Detective, who works in the division.

Though some of the cases are decades old, he said they're never considered "cold." Detectives pick up old cases routinely.

The roundup is helpful, he said, because it offers a brief spike in manpower, which nets bigger results.

Law enforcement does these types of roundups routinely, but Tampa police say this is their largest.

Have you or a loved one been arrested for a criminal charge or grand theft? Then contact the Tampa Bay area criminal defense attorneys of Blake & Dorsten, P.A. for a free consultation!

For more information, or to speak directly with experienced Tampa Bay area criminal defense lawyers please contact BLAKE & DORSTEN, P.A. at 727.286.6141 or email the lawyers your questions at: info@blakedorstenlaw.com. We are located at 4707 140th Ave N, Suite 104 in Clearwater, across from the criminal courthouse in the airport business center, minutes from Tampa and St. Petersburg.