County's civil process division stays busy even with assistance
(Published Saturday, August 11, 2007 12:11:57 AM CST)
A d v e r t i s e m e n t
By Ann Marie Ames aames@gazetteextra.com
By law, a sheriff's department has to do only two things-maintain a jail and serve civil process papers.
Many residents don't know it's more expensive to go through the sheriff's department to serve papers than to hire a private server, said Dan Murray, retired Rock County Sheriff's Department detective captain. Murray is one of several people in the area who make a part-time job out of serving papers. His fees don't include the cost of a sheriff's cruiser, uniforms or benefits, Murray said.
But despite the cost-a one trip service plus mileage to a Janesville home costs $34.63-the sheriff's department's seven-member civil process division has more than enough work to keep it busy, said department head Sgt. Bret DeRemer.
Sgt. Bret DeRemer of the Rock County Sheriff's Department prepares to serve an eviction notice to a Rock County resident. DeRemer's civil process division serves dozens of papers each day to Rock County residents.
Al Hoch/Gazette Staff
The department serves 400 to 500 papers every month and served around 2,300 for the district attorney's office last year, DeRemer said.
The papers include notices of eviction, restraining orders and injunctions. Once eviction proceedings have taken place, the division also assists in the physical eviction of indigent tenants.
The division serves child support papers to inmates at the Rock County Jail. The Rock County child support enforcement office puts service of the rest of its papers out to bid. The job includes serving about 1,000 child support documents in a year, director of child support Kris Baker Ellis said.
Markley's Process Serving of Beloit holds the current contract with the child support enforcement office. The county paid Markley's $18,972 in 2006.
Bret DeRemer
The county's civil process division also sells foreclosed homes-351 homes in 2006, or $32.2 million in properties sold, DeRemer said. That amount is total sales, not assessed values, he said.
In the entrance to the Rock County Courthouse on Wednesday, DeRemer stood with a list of 13 foreclosed homes-a big stack for one day. In front of a group of attorneys, potential buyers and the curious, DeRemer read the prices of properties.
No one bid, and the homes all became the property of the bank.
The rest of the morning, DeRemer served subpoenas to three Janesville residents and eviction notices to three homeowners in the Rockvale Mobile Home Park on Highway 51 south of Janesville. After he pounded on doors, he held his hand on the side of the mobile homes to feel if someone was moving around inside, hiding from him.
