Columbus County moves to electronic warrant system

WHITEVILLE, NC (WWAY) — Columbus County Sheriff’s deputies will now be able to access arrest warrants at their convenience. The new computerized system, which starts tomorrow, lets officers print criminal processes for warrants, orders for arrests and summons when they’re needed. That way, they won’t have to carry around a bunch of unnecessary paperwork.

Patrol cars will also be equipped with computers and a printer so officers can access the documents wherever they are. All Columbus County Sheriff’s office employees have been trained.

“It’s going to cut down on a lot of travel time,” says Columbus County Sheriff Chris Batten. “In the past, we’ve had to verify that warrants were here at the office when officers would intervene with folks in the field that they knew were wanted on certain charges. We’d have to verify that the warrants were here before we could actually take those persons into custody.”

The North Carolina Administrative Office of the Courts has switched nearly half the counties in the state over to the computerized system. Once the rest of the state moves over, all civil processes from lawsuits to foreclosures will be accessible through the system.