Civil
The Civil Division of the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office consists of two branches, Civil Process and Court Security. Both are under the command of the Division Lieutenant.
The Civil Process branch handles the service of various legal documents including summonses, subpoenas, garnishments, assorted writs and orders of protection. There are currently five deputies who are the field workers that serve approximately 10,000 documents each year. In addition the civil process division executes various forms of process such as court ordered executions where real or personal property is levied and sold to satisfy a plaintiff’s judgment. Civil commitment documents directing a person to be taken to a treatment center for mental or drug/alcohol evaluation are also handled by the Civil Division.
The Court Security branch consists of three Deputy Sheriff’s whose responsibilities include the duties of court bailiffs as well as general security for the courthouse and courthouse annex building. The duties of the deputies assigned to this unit range from assisting the courts by summoning prospective jurors to taking into custody those persons sentenced by the court to jail or prison. Currently there are plans being developed for increased security including a metal detector and x-ray equipment.