Surrendering fugitives overwhelm Camden

Almost 4,000 people - more than authorities could process - turned themselves in during last week's Fugitive Safe Surrender drive in Camden, officials said yesterday.

During the four days of the program at Antioch Baptist Church, law enforcement agencies processed 2,245 people. In addition, 1,563 people were given vouchers and asked to appear at court dates next month because there was not enough time for authorities to hear their cases.

"We were overwhelmed," U.S. Marshal James Plousis said of the turnout, which was nearly triple what some agencies had expected and was the second-largest in the program's history.

Camden is the 12th city to host a surrender program, aimed at giving nonviolent offenders a chance to confront unresolved legal issues. Only Detroit has had a bigger turnout.

Fugitives who arrived at the church filled out paperwork and were seen by judges who looked more favorably on their circumstances because they had surrendered.

Authorities had hoped the Camden program would match the success of Philadelphia's, which was held in September and netted 1,249 fugitives.

But organizers in Camden were swamped from the first day and scrambled to accommodate crowds all week.

Of those who surrendered and were processed, only nine were arrested.

Law enforcement agencies have said there were 8,000 to 10,000 outstanding warrants in Camden County before the program began. When all of those who surrendered are processed, authorities estimate that more than 6,000 of the warrants will have been cleared.