Criminal Debt FAQ's

You can make a payment via:

• Online through our pay.gov Criminal debt form found here.
• In person at one of our court locations found here (please be sure to double check our office hours)
• By Mail to one of our court locations found here (be sure to use Mailing address listed)

Restitution paid into the Court by the defendant(s) is disbursed monthly, towards the end of the month, pursuant to the Judgment entered by the Court. The Clerk’s Office will hold funds until $25 or more is collected for disbursement to the victim.  Please keep in mind that we must receive payments from the defendant in order to disburse to victims. Payments from defendants are not guaranteed.

The Clerk’s Office is responsible for the receipt and disbursement of criminal debt payments.  Collection/enforcement of criminal debt to include victim name/address changes and claiming unclaimed funds is the responsibility of the U.S. Attorney’s office.  Please call that office at 509-353-2767 for assistance in these matters.

Payments will be held for a minimum of 30 days prior to disbursement. Depending on how the payment is received, payments could be held longer. Pay.gov payments are held for a minimum of 120 days prior to disbursement. Payments received through the Treasury Offset Payment method are held for 6 months prior to being disbursed.

The Defendant has not made a payment to us, or there is not enough apportioned to your debt to generate a check to you. Do we have your current address? If you have moved, please complete an Address Change Form and supply the required supporting documentation. You can find the Address Change Form here. Our office does not have the ability to track down defendants. If you have moved, and restitution payments have been returned to us, we will hold them for a year in hopes that you will contact us. If we do not hear from you, your payments are transferred to unclaimed funds. Payments that we receive from the defendant will still be apportioned to your debt, however, in order to receive the funds that are held in “unclaimed”, an Order from the Court must be filed. Please call the U.S. Attorney’s office at 509-353-2767 for name changes or for assistance in claiming unclaimed funds.

The Clerk’s Office may only receipt payments pursuant to an Order of the Court.  If there is an Order entered in the case, directing the acceptance of payment prior to sentencing, you will be able to make those payments.

Please coordinate with the Victim Specialist in the U.S. Attorney’s Office, at 509.353.2767, to take the necessary action for the Court to enter an Order changing the name of the victim.

Please coordinate with the Victim Specialist in the U.S. Attorney’s Office, at 509.353.2767, to take the necessary action for the Court to enter an Order changing the name of the victim.  Supporting documentation may be required.

Yes. Please complete the ACH Payment Request AO213 form found here. Once completed, please email this form to finance@waed.uscourts.gov along with supporting documentation.

Yes. The Victim Specialist in the U.S. Attorney’s office can help file a motion requesting your future restitution funds be transferred to the Crime Victim’s Fund. The Crime Victim’s Fund was created to help victims of violent crimes, such as assault, homicide, child sexual abuse/assault, etc. The fund provides compensation for such expenses as medical bills, loss of earnings, funeral expenses, etc. For questions, please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Office at 509-353-2767.