Published Wednesday, August 2, 2000
MERCER COUNTY
DJ offices to hear ‘Charge it’
By Hal JohnsonHerald Writer
As soon as state court administrators approve credit card payments, offenders can take care of their traffic violation fines with a swipe of a credit card at a local district justice office.
That could come "any day now," said Peter A. Morin, Mercer County court administrator. "We’re ready to go, except for the state court administrator’s OK," he said.
A July 1 order by Mercer County Common Pleas Court Judge Francis J. Fornelli gives offenders who plea guilty or are found guilty of a criminal offense or private complaint the option of paying their fines by Visa or Mastercard credit cards.
To defray the cost of installing and accepting credit card charges, the court order instructs district justices to add $1 to all fines imposed beginning July 1, Morin said. Credit card costs include transaction fees and the lease of equipment, he said.
"That type of thing has been done in the past," Morin said, noting the state has imposed additions to fines to cover such things as contributions to a catastrophic collision fund.
The credit card option at the county’s five district justice offices is an extension to the option at the county courthouse. Mercer County Clerk of Courts has been accepting Visa or Mastercard payments for fines for the past 1˝ years.
However, few offenders have paid their fines by credit card in the Clerk of Courts office. Only five or six payments per month are via credit cards, said Risa Dunham, deputy clerk of courts.