Renter issue

[Gabriel H.]

I have a renter for the last 4 months who have paid rent on time or early every month.  They were late paying rent this month, so we reached out to them.  It's a family of 5 with 3 kids. The husband was arrested for domestic abuse and child neglect this past weekend. He bailed out of jail, withdrew all the money from their account and is facing 4-5 years in jail and won't be coming back home.

The wife is going to borrow money for rent from her parents and pay by tomorrow.  She started back in the workforce this week. But she won't be able to cover rent next month on a single salary and is asking to be released from the lease on Nov 1.

If she is telling the truth, which I have no reason to doubt, then I'd like to go somewhat easy on her - no late payment this month, let her out of the lease and return as much of the deposit as I can if there is no damage to the unit when she moves out.  So my question is - how can I look up the arrest record of her husband?  Should I somehow ask her to provide any sort of paperwork to show the arrest record or case #?  

If the story can't be backed up, then she'd probably be looking at late fees, eviction notice and forfeiting rent. It's sad, because they really seemed to love living there and were otherwise the ideal tenants.

I've dug around on the city and county websites a bit, but I can't find his name in any of the booking records for the past week or so.

I know that, by the books, I should serve a notice to start the eviction process to cover me if everything goes downhill. I'm just looking for the best way to look up his arrest record to see how compassionate I want to be.

[Brian Corbett]

Most arrest records are public knowledge in most places.  I would call the Sherriff and/or the Police department and ask them directly.  Maybe you know a cop that can do a little digging for you?

Also, even if the story is backed up, I would strongly advise against returning the deposit.  You will undoubtedly have turn cost at a time when you were not planning on having turn cost.  You could do them a favor by waiving late fee for the month and letting them out of their lease early, but I would hold tight there.