SECTION 401 CIVIL PROCESS (2024)

SECTION: 401

TITLE: CIVIL PROCESS

EFFECTIVE DATE: February 15, 2017

INTRODUCTION:

The Evangeline Parish Sheriff's Office is mandated by the State Law to serve Civil Process in support of the judicial function. The functioning of the courts if affected by the prompt service of the court documents. Thus the effectiveness and image of the judicial system are dependent, in part, upon the effective and timely service of court documents.

PURPOSE:

The Evangeline Parish Sheriff's Office maintains a Civil Process Service consisting of sworn Sheriff's Deputies. Their primary duty is civil process, but they may be called upon to assist other departments with the Sheriff's Office. Civil Process Servers deal directly with the public in executing warrants, civil papers, subpoenas, and any other criminal or civil papers as ordered by the courts.

POLICY:

It is the policy of the Evangeline Parish Sheriff's Office to execute Civil Processes and all other orders as directed by the courts in accordance with Louisiana Revised Statue 33:1435.

DEFINITIONS:

1. Civil Process: Those writs, summons, mandates, or other process issuing from a court of law pertaining to a cause of action of a civil nature.

1. Criminal Process: Those writs, summons, mandates, warrants, or other process issued from a court of law compelling a person to answer for a felony or misdemeanor. The term also includes process issued and in crime detection or suppression, such as search warrants, subpoenas, etc.

1. Foreign Jurisdiction: Jurisdiction outside the State of Louisiana. Often process is referred to as "out-of-state".

1. In-State-Non-Local: Within the State of Louisiana, but outside the jurisdictional boundaries of Evangeline Parish.

1. Process: A means of compelling defendants in an action to appear in court or a means whereby a court compels compliance with its demands.

1. Legal Process: Any item of civil or criminal process that is valid on its face and is to be served or executed by Law Enforcement Officers.

ORGANIZATION AND ADMINISTRATION:

1. Operational Procedures-General:

1. Location: The Civil Process Service is located in the Sheriff's Office in the Courthouse.

2. Tour of Duty: The hours of operation in the actual service areas are flexible to include evenings and weekend work as necessary.

3. Call-In: Each deputy working service areas will call to the Sheriff's Office for messages between 8:00AM and 4:00PM.

4. Services of Process: Service will be performed in accordance with the appropriate section of the Code of Louisiana, the orders of the court, and instructions of supervisory personnel.

5. Training: It is the responsibility of the Civil Process Service Supervisor or his/her designee to see that all assigned deputies are properly trained.

6. Area Assignment: Deputies are assigned to particular service areas which are designed to meet departmental needs and provide for the efficient execution of services.

7. Reports: The Civil Process Service will maintain reports on services, evictions, sales, time expended and other statistical data as required by supervisory personnel.

8. Vehicle: Deputies assigned take home vehicles will maintain them in proper condition at all times and adhere to all current general orders and department memos concerning their use.

9. Radios: All Civil Process Servers will operate vehicles equipped with high band radios. Communications pertaining to the Civil Process will be called in on the high band frequency and answered by Dispatchers in the Telecommunications Center.

10. Resident Deputies: The Civil Process Service maintains a Unit of part-time and reserve personnel who assist the Civil Process Deputies by handling the service of legal civil process documents and minor complaints around their residential areas.

1. DOCUMENTATION/CONTROL OF PROCESS:

1. The Civil Process Service of the Evangeline Parish Sheriff's Office on

Civil and Criminal process matters ministerial. It acts on the order of the Court and in accordance with the various provisions of Louisiana Law.

2. Upon receipt of process from the courts of Evangeline Parish and/or courts of foreign jurisdictions, the Civil Process Service shall maintain a record of each legal process, Civil and Criminal, which is filed, to include:

1. Date and time received
2. Type of legal process (civil or criminal)
3. Nature of the document
4. Source of the document
5. Name of the plaintiff/complainant or name of the defendant/respondent
6. Deputy assigned the service
7. Date of assignment
8. Court docket number
9. Date service due

3. Records on execution or attempted service on legal process documents shall be maintained and shall include:

1. Date and time executed/attempted
2. Name of deputy executing/attempting service
3. Name of person on whom the process was served/executed
4. Method of service/reason for non-service
5. Location of service/attempt

PROCEDURES:

1. Legal Process (Civil and Criminal)

1. The Civil Process Service shall execute warrants, civil papers, subpoenas, and any other civil/criminal papers ordered by the courts in compliance with this General Order and Louisiana Law.

2. It shall be the policy of the Evangeline Parish Sheriff's Office that a deputy will not be allowed to serve legal process documents to his/her family members.

3. Provisions for service of process pertaining to specific cases are located in the Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure and its ancillaries. These rules are to be used when a special situation is encountered.

4. Service made on a person who is incarcerated shall be personal service on the Warden or his designee for that shift. The Warden or his designee shall in turn make personal service on the person incarcerated. Proof of service shall be made by filing in the record the affidavit of the person serving the citation and pleadings on the person who is incarcerated.

5. To make service on a corporation the deputy must act according to the information on the face of the document issued from the court. Corporations are served through their agent or directors per the instruction on the citation issued from the court. The person named on the citation must be served personally. Domiciliary service is not acceptable for corporations.

6. If a business does not cooperate by allowing a deputy to serve an original notice, the Civil Deputy does not have the authority to demand entry in order to serve the notice on employees in a civil action.

7. Deputies shall show due diligence in receiving, logging, monitoring, and executing service of all process received.

8. Legal process services in foreign jurisdictions will be served in compliance with Louisiana Law, unless foreign law allows for other methods which would be included in the process itself or in instructions to the Sheriff.

9. Only sworn Deputies of the Evangeline Parish Sheriff's Office may execute/serve warrants, criminal summons, and search warrants or other process not exempted by state law. All arrests of persons, civil or criminal, are to be accomplished only by sworn Deputies of this Office.

10. The Civil/Criminal Process Clerk shall review all documents for service on a daily basis. The Clerk will then issue the document to the appropriate deputy for service, according to the service area.

1. DEPUTIES RESPONSIBILITY:

1. After all information has been recorded, the Civil/Criminal Process Clerk then gives the document to the assigned deputy.

2. Upon receipt of a document for service, the deputy shall review the paper, paying particular attention to the nature of the paper, the due date, and location of service. The following information shall be taken from the document and logged on an activity worksheet:

1. Suit number
2. Name of person to be served
3. Date paper was received
4. Court date
5. Date paper is served
6. Mileage
7. Type of service and name of person served
8. Date service is attempted
9. Deputy's name and date return is made

3. The deputy shall proceed as soon as possible to serve the document/process, as demands for service allow.

4. If the person or place named in the process/document is found, the deputy shall serve the paper and take appropriate action accordance with law. The serving deputy will make the appropriate return on the document indicating the date of service and method of service. The signed returned copy of the process will then be returned to the Civil/Criminal Process Clerk for processing.

5. When service is attempted and not made, the deputy shall record the document date and disposition of each such attempt on the Civil Process Form. If service cannot be made, for whatever reason, prior to the due date, the document shall be returned to the Civil Process Clerk with one or more of the following reasons for non-service.

1. Moved (New Address)
2. Moved, address unknown
3. Post office has no address
4. Unable to locate
5. Hold-request of (name)
6. District Attorney recalled
7. In the Armed Forces
8. Hospitalized/Deceased
9. Not served in time for court date/past court date
10. Received too late for service
11. This address not in our parish
12. Comments or other reason for not serving

6. Upon return of a civil process document, the Civil Process Clerk shall make the following entries into the Civil Process System Computer file:

1. Personal or domiciliary, if domiciliary, to whom; date of service; date to be billed; amount to be billed; and date of payment.
2. The Civil Process Clerk will then bill and forward the bill along with the served or un-served document back to the appropriate jurisdiction.

7. Upon return of a criminal process document, the Criminal Process Clerk shall make the following entries into the Criminal Process System Computer file:

1. Method of service, to whom process we served or on whom executed; date and time served.

1. The Criminal Process Clerk will then forward the served or un-served document back to the appropriate jurisdiction. If the process document is from out of Acadia Parish and no service was made, the reason for non-service will be indicated and forwarded with the document to the appropriate jurisdiction.

1. PROPERTY MANAGEMENT:

1. All property seized pursuant to civil action shall be accounted for in the agency for each action.

2. When possession of seized or attached property is required prior to a public auction, a secured storage site and movers shall be rented and utilized at the expense of the plaintiff. This property shall be inventoried and transportation arrangements made to the secured storage site by the sworn Legal Process Deputy.

3. All property seized, found, forfeited, and/or ordered sold or destroyed, shall be disposed of in accordance with the appropriate Provisions of Louisiana Law.

1. FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT:

1. All monies received and/or collected by the Sheriff's Office as fees for the service of legal process shall be deposited with a financial institute and accounted for.

2. Bookkeeping and financial records of all monies/funds received by the Sheriff's Office in connection with the legal process function shall be maintained and conform to generally accepted accounting principles. Said record shall be audited annually by private auditors hired by the Evangeline Parish Sheriff's Office who forward all records and findings to the Legislature Auditors.