Officials reduced a $7,700 lien to $800 for a man who was an inmate at the Marion County Jail for 90 days in 2012 for driving with a suspended license, erasing thousands of dollars in fines and interest after crediting the man for time served as an inmate worker during his incarceration.
The Marion County Board of County Commissioners granted the reduction to Robert Strickland during its regular meeting on Tuesday, June 3.
Strickland, who currently lives in Chiefland, attended the meeting but did not speak on his own behalf. He requested the reduction in connection with a 2012 judgment resulting from a 90-day jail sentence for driving with a suspended license.
In his original letter to the county, Strickland said he had made “every effort to correct” his past mistakes and “move forward in a positive direction.”
“I paid all fines related to the charge, had my driver’s license reinstated in 2017, and have maintained it in good standing ever since – without any further suspensions,” reads Strickland’s letter. In 2019, Strickland earned his Class A Commercial Driver’s License. Since earning that license, he has been “working hard” and staying on the right path.
“Unfortunately, over the years, the amount owned on this lien has increased significantly due to accumulated interest, making it an even greater financial burden than the original debt. The lien has now remained on my record for over a decade,” reads the letter.
The board approved a reduction of the lien based on Strickland having served 73 days as an inmate worker, lowering it to $800.
The reduction is one of several that the Marion County Board of County Commissioners has approved for inmates over the past year.
That includes a reduction for the lien of a Marion mother who asked for assistance so that she could build a harvest market, and a stay-at-home mother and widow who worked for multiple months while she was incarcerated.