In Baytown, they take library fines seriously

The next time you check a book out from the Sterling Municipal Library in Baytown, you're really going to want to make sure you return it on time. If not, you could be arrested, like Joanne Ibarra was on Tuesday.

It's not like the police were hunting Ibarra down, but when she was pulled over for a traffic violation, the officer ran her record and found an outstanding warrant for a long-overdue library book. Ibarra ended up getting tickets for disregarding a traffic sign, having no coverage and driving without a license and being arrested for the overdue book, which Baytown considers a violation of a city ordinance. Assistant City Manager Kelvin Knauf told KTRK that the library and the Baytown city attorney had both sent Ibarra notices about the book, but she said she never got the notices because she moved. (Maybe they got lost the same way her auto coverage papers and driver's license did.)

Ibarra said she was surprised to be arrested for not returning a book, but she accepted responsibility: On Tuesday, she paid a $50 court fee and a $118 overdue fine. According to the Sterling Library's website, the overdue charge for a book is 10 cents a day, which means Ibarra's book was due more than three years ago. She said the whole experience has sort of put her off reading: "I don't want to see any more books, not right now," she said.

The city of Houston, by the way, refers overdue library book cases to collection agencies — you might end up with your kneecaps shattered and your car repossessed, but at least you won't be arrested. (This story made us wonder what the most overdue book ever was. We're not sure, but we think the one returned to a library in England after 335 years might qualify.)