Monday, July 19, 2010
Which Bad Guys are Banned from YOUR 'Hood? New Online Database in City Shows You
Posted By Nicholas Phillips on Mon, Jul 19, 2010 at 11:00 AM
Circuit Clerk Mariano Favazza has rolled out a new webpage today where a city resident chooses her neighborhood on a map and then sees those folks who aren't allowed to be there.
St. Louis judges commonly issue "stay-away orders" for criminal defendants as a condition of either their probation or release on bond.
Sometimes, the judge orders offenders to keep away from a specific residence, block, street or kind of business (like a bar, or all Schnucks stores). In other cases, offenders need a probation officer's permission to go certain places. And if they violate these orders, they can be arrested, and possibly thrown in jail.
The info is all public, but up until now, only police officers had easy access to it.
"Why leave that information to 250 police officers on any given day when I can give it to 200,000 people?" Favazza says, who is being challenged in the August Democratic primary for circuit clerk. "Wouldn't it be better if you knew who wasn't supposed to be in your neighborhood?"
The database specifies where the defendant cannot tread and for how long. For many (but not all) offenders, you'll see a mugshot and links to other sites where you can track their criminal case or contact their probation officer.
"It's not a magic bullet," says Favazza. "But it balances out the playing field a bit."
St. Louis judges commonly issue "stay-away orders" for criminal defendants as a condition of either their probation or release on bond.
Sometimes, the judge orders offenders to keep away from a specific residence, block, street or kind of business (like a bar, or all Schnucks stores). In other cases, offenders need a probation officer's permission to go certain places. And if they violate these orders, they can be arrested, and possibly thrown in jail.
The info is all public, but up until now, only police officers had easy access to it.
"Why leave that information to 250 police officers on any given day when I can give it to 200,000 people?" Favazza says, who is being challenged in the August Democratic primary for circuit clerk. "Wouldn't it be better if you knew who wasn't supposed to be in your neighborhood?"
The database specifies where the defendant cannot tread and for how long. For many (but not all) offenders, you'll see a mugshot and links to other sites where you can track their criminal case or contact their probation officer.
"It's not a magic bullet," says Favazza. "But it balances out the playing field a bit."
Support Local Journalism.
Join the Riverfront Times Press Club
Local journalism is information. Information is power. And we believe everyone deserves access to accurate independent coverage of their community and state. Our readers helped us continue this coverage in 2020, and we are so grateful for the support.
Help us keep this coverage going in 2021. Whether it's a one-time acknowledgement of this article or an ongoing membership pledge, your support goes to local-based reporting from our small but mighty team.
Join the Riverfront Times Club for as little as $5 a month.
Speaking of News
More by Nicholas Phillips
Most Popular
-
St. Louis' Earthbound Beer Brews Anti-Police Surveillance Beer in Partnership with the ACLU Read More
-
Hartmann: GOP Losers Can't Accept Medicaid Whupping Read More
-
St. Louis COVID-19 Case Rates 'Unacceptably High' as Mask Mandates Return Read More
-
In the Midst of St. Louis' Opioid Epidemic, a Rescue Mission Read More
-
World Naked Bike Ride Pedals Back to St. Louis on August 28 Read More
Read the Digital Print Issue
July 21, 2021
Newsletters
Euclid Media Group, LLC
Read Our Sister Publications
- Cleveland Scene
- Cincinnati CityBeat
- Creative Loafing Tampa
- Detroit Metro Times
- Louisville LEO Weekly
- Orlando Weekly
- San Antonio Current
- Out in SA
- Out in STL
Marketing Services
