Mother's suit against bail agents due in court

A mother who sued bail enforcement agents for arresting her daughter will appear in court Jan. 6, on a motion to compel the defendants to produce documents.

Patricia Olson, 72, of Alton, harbored her daughter who was wanted in Alabama in September 2003. She is seeking $50,000 in restitution from the bondsmen who crossed state lines to apprehend her daughter.

The suit filed Dec. 22, 2004, in Madison County Circuit Court does not identify her daughter. But according to court documents, Monica S. Olson is listed at the same address of Patricia Olson. Monica has been charged with three felony and three misdemeanors in Madison County since 1999.

In February 2000, Circuit Judge Daniel Stack issued an emergency order of protection against Monica after Patricia was allegedly abused by her.

Olson's suit alleges that agents of Liberty Bail Bond Company of Morgan County, Ala.--Cedric s. Coonrod and William Garner--removed Olson's daughter from her house in violation of Illinois law.

According to the complaint, Olson attempted to hold off bounty hunters who came looking for her daughter at her home on Sept. 23, 2003. She claims that Garner, acting on Coonrod's instructions, entered her home without Olson's permission and seized her daughter.

Olson acknowledges in the suit that her daughter's move from Alabama while criminal charges were pending "apparently violated the terms of her release from custody from the legal authorities in Alabama." She also admits to lying about her daughter's whereabouts.

Garner appeared at Olson's house at 1 p.m. and when she met him at the door, Garner advised her he was there to arrest her daughter, according to the suit. Garner failed to identify himself by name or as a policeman or as a bounty hunter, Olson claims.

She told Garner her daughter was not home, then Garner advised her that if she and the other occupants of the house did not cooperate they would also go to jail. Olson claims she then told Garner he could not enter the home.

"Garner then entered the premises by following behind the plaintiff without the permission of the plaintiff and searched the premises while repeatedly threatening that anyone who did not get out of his way would be arrested," the complaint states.

Olson claims that after searching the home for 30 minutes, Garner located her daughter in a bedroom in the house and removed her from the premises.

"Illinois law provides in 725 ILCS 5/103-9 that no bail bondsman from any state may seize or transport unwillingly and person found in this state who is allegedly in violation of a bail bond posted in some other state," the complaint states.

Olson claims the defendants each knew or should have known that their purposes of coming to Illinois were illegal.

Represented by David O. Hesi of Alton, Olson claims that the defendants, in failing to present identification, trespassing, and entering the residence without permission, threatening to arrest anyone who resisted, and illegally abducting her daughter are all "extreme and outrageous" and was done for the purpose of intimidating her without regard to the effects the actions would have on her mental and emotional well-being.

Olson claims as a result of the conduct of the defendants, she has suffered severe and extreme emotional distress for which she has in the past and will in the future require treatment and counseling, and has been unable to attend to her ordinary affairs of life as a result of the incident.

Liberty Bail Bond is represented by Russell Meyer of Alton.

Circuit Judge Andy Matoesian will hear the motion at 9 a.m. in Courtroom 351.

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