A federal judge in Toledo has ruled that Perrysburg Municipal Court officials "appear to violate the law" by using the Wood County Jail as a "debtor's prison" for people who owe court costs.

"Imprisonment for debt was long ago abolished," wrote U.S. District Judge David Katz.

The federal judge dismissed a claim for monetary damages by Katina Jones, a Toledo woman who was held overnight in jail for not paying court costs.

The judge ruled Thursday that Municipal Judge Dwight Osterud, Clerk of Courts Janice Elkes, and the court had absolute immunity under the law against the claim.

But Judge Katz left the door open for Toledo attorney John Potts to seek an injunction against the municipal court if he can establish a "pattern or practice" that Judge Osterud is imprisoning criminal defendants who owe court costs or cannot pay fines.

"I'm fairly confident this is not an isolated incident, and we'll find the court has routinely used the Wood County Jail as a debtor's prison," Mr. Potts told The Blade.

"We would have to do discovery as to the records maintained by the clerk to determine whether this has been done before, and how many times," he said.

Mr. Potts said Ms. Jones served a 90-day jail sentence plus court costs after violat-ing her probation for a misdemeanor charge of receiving stolen property. On Nov. 9, 2003, after serving her sentence, she was arrested on a bench warrant issued by Judge Osterud for not appearing for a hearing related to her failure to pay the court costs.

According to the lawsuit, the next day the judge ordered Ms. Jones to pay $50 of $206 owed for "fines and costs" before she could be released from jail.

"I think I am on sound legal ground in what I am doing," Judge Osterud said in an interview yesterday. "There are a number of cases that back up what I am doing."

Judge Katz's order did not specifically rule on the legality of jailing defendants who owe court costs.

Mr. Potts said he named the court clerk in his lawsuit because she combined fines and costs in court documents, despite different payment conditions for the two.

He said that practice facilitated the possibly unlawful conduct of the court.

Ms. Elkes could not be reached for comment yesterday.

Under Ohio law, Mr. Potts said, court costs are considered a civil debt. Failure to pay cannot legally result in imprisonment unless paying court costs is a condition of probation, which was not the situation in this case, he said.

Mr. Potts said failure to pay fines can result in imprisonment if, after a court hearing, it is determined the debtor has the means to pay.

Failure to pay some forms of debt, such as child support, can result in jail sentences, although debtor's prisons have not been used in the United States since the mid-1800s.

This is not the first legal battle between Judge Osterud and Mr. Potts. In 2002, Mr. Potts successfully appealed a sentence of driving school and a $75 fine after he pleaded no contest to a speeding ticket in Judge Osterud's courtroom.

The Ohio 6th District Court of Appeals in Toledo determined that sentence exceeded the maximum penalty for speeding, which is a $100 fine.

"There's a history here of a judge who does what he wants to do without regard of whether it's authorized by law," Mr. Potts said.

Contact Eric Lund at:

elund@theblade.com

or 419-724-6050.

First Published July 1, 2006, 11:53 a.m.