Los Angeles Bench Warrant Lawyer

Bench Warrants

The Los Angeles Court System defines a “bench warrant” as:

“A judge’s order to arrest and bring a person to court because the person has failed to appear in court at a specified date and time.”

Additionally, although it is not specified, a Los Angeles bench warrant can be an order from a judge for law enforcement officers to find a defendant and to bring that defendant before the court because that defendant is seemingly guilty of violating the terms of a probation requirement.

A judge will issue a bench warrant on you just because you didn’t show up to court. A bench warrant doesn’t mean Law Enforcement Officers will go on the hunt for you, but if you get stopped for another offense, say a traffic offense, when they check your ID, they will find out that there’s a bench warrant out for you.

Bench warrants and arrest warrants get entered into a computerized system. A bench warrant will show up if you get pulled over when they run your ID through the system. That’s how a minor traffic citation stop can quickly turn into an arrest.

Getting Out of Jail

Occasionally, due to administrative limitations, even if law enforcement officers realize you have a bench warrant, you may be cited and let go; however, getting pulled over and having a bench warrant come up when your ID is run through the system will usually result in arrest.

Your next step would be posting bail for the amount of the warrant, but you could spend three or four days in jail during that process, so it’s best to avoid this situation by taking care of a bench warrant, as soon as possible after you’re aware you have one.

Missing Court

If you missed a court date, assume that you have a bench warrant. If you think you might have a bench warrant, call your attorney or check your case status online. You could have a bench warrant issued for you because you forgot to pay a fine or didn’t even know you owed one. There could be a clerical error regarding your completing a DUI or Anger Management program. It’s scary, but muster your courage and check your case status online.

You seek to avoid an unpleasant event or avoid discovering some painful reality is true. You procrastinate because you fear discovering you are not up to the challenge. Sooner or later, the thing you fear approaching comes to you. – Dr. David Viscott, Emotional Resilience

Depending on the details of your case, on who the prosecutor is, on who the judge is, you may or may not be thrown into jail when you go to get your bench warrant recalled. Yes, it’s possible that you will be incarcerated when you go to court to get your bench warrant recalled. However, if you just missed one court date for a first offense, you likely will not be jailed, due to jail overcrowding. The length of time the bench warrant has been out could impact your ability to have it recalled. Also, the deal a prosecutor offers you after several years might be much worse than the deal the prosecutor was willing to make on the original order. Make sure you have a capable attorney. With the guidance of your counsel, you can appeal to the court citing job, rent, child support, and child care responsibilities.

Recalling a Bench Warrant

The faster you act to get a bench warrant recalled, the easier it will be. The process of recalling a bench warrant varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. To have a bench warrant recalled in Los Angeles, you fill out a CR-302 Request and Order to Recall Warrant Form and submit it to the court. Your attorney may be able to appear for you to have the bench warrant recalled; you might not even have to go to court.

No one wants their life to be interrupted by being arrested.

If you know you have a bench warrant, you may feel too afraid to address it, but get over it. You don’t have to do it alone. An able and experienced attorney’s intervention as soon as possible will definitely help.

The Longer You Wait, The Worse it Gets

Procrastination is never great, but it’s certainly understandable.

When it comes to bench warrants, though, time is of the essence; the longer you wait, the worse it will get. Be brave!!

Los Angeles Bench Warrant Attorney

If you are being investigated for a crime in Los Angeles, it’s crucial that you get in touch with an effective and experienced criminal defense attorney, who may be able to help you avoid the filing of criminal charges against you.

Call Us for a FREE Case Review: 310-274-6529