Arrest warrant for AMBER alert suspect invalid over technicality

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WOIO) - The arrest warrant to for a man police say abducted a 13-year-old was deemed "invalid" and he was ordered to be released, according reporting by WHIO.

On Nov. 8, Police found 48-year-old Shane Smith in Springfield, Ohio in Clark County cancelling a statewide Amber Alert involving his 13-year-old step daughter.

Smith was found in a vehicle behind a house on Stanton Avenue in Springfield.

Police said the incident took place on South Huron Drive in the city of Columbus around 10 a.m. on Nov. 8.

A court order filed on Thursday ordered that Smith be released from jail becasue the arrest warrant filed in Franklin County was invalid, according to reporting by WHIO in Dayton.

Court documents revealed that the box that designated the warrant as an arrest warrant was unchecked, according WHIO.

While court documents describe this this as "merely a technicality," the original warrant was voided, according to WHIO.

Columbus Police are able to reissue an arrest warrant to take Smith back into custody.