It seems almost incomprehensible to many of us that court fines could go unpaid. But, apparently, they do.

In Adams County alone, more than $1.2 million in fines levied since 1996 are outstanding … and that’s just in the circuit court.

While Adams County isn’t alone in this problem, we may be taking a step towards remedying the situation.

Newly-elected Adams County Circuit Clerk M.L. &uot;Binkey&uot; Vines complained about the fines last week, raising a red flag for the public.

As an answer, Judge Forest &uot;Al&uot; Johnson Jr. made a bold step and issued an order giving Vines both the directive and the legal &uot;teeth&uot; he needs to collect the fines.

In the order issued this week, Judge Johnson told Vines to report all overdue fines to the court quarterly — a move that should guarantee both the clerk’s office and the judges work together to manage the problem.

Judges Johnson, Lillie Blackmon Sanders and John Hudson are apparently in agreement on the renewed focus on collecting fines, and thanks to Johnson’s order they should have no excuse for not being informed about the problem.

We know it’s unrealistic to expect all court fines will be paid, but if Adams County can collect even a small potion of those overdue fines, and if the judges and clerk’s office can do a better job of managing the problem in the future, then we all stand to benefit.