What do I do if I was charged with a misdemeanor for petty theft and now there is a warrant out for my arrest?
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What do I do if I was charged with a misdemeanor for petty theft and now there is a warrant out for my arrest?
My citation had a court date but when I showed up to court the clerk told me that the Police Department had not yet filed charges; I was to call once a week to my county’s superior court. I call once a week but I have not been given any information regarding what actions I should take. It has been 7 months and still I have not hear or received any information regarding my case. Today I decided to speak to the superior court’s clerk department to see why I haven’t received information regarding my case, and I was told there is now a warrant for my arrest which I do not understand why that is happening if i have not been contacted on any actions to take. What should I do?
Asked on July 21, 2015 under Criminal Law, California
Answers:
B.H.F., Member, Texas State Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 8 years ago | Contributor
If you were out on bond... a good starting point is your bondsman. They will have access to some court records and be able to tell you what happened with any notices that you should have received. If you have a good bondsman, they can often walk you through the process of getting the warrant set aside on the condition that they stay on your bond.
If you have a bad bondsman, then find a new bondsman or new attorney... because they will simply turn you in to avoid a bond forfeiture.
Your next step is to consult with an attorney. You would be better hiring one for full representation... but if you are limited on funds, you can hire one for the limited purpose of helping you with the warrant issue. They can find out what went wrong, make a motion to reinstate your bond (if any) and help assure the court that this was an isolated incident or miscommunication-- not an attempt on your part to abscond. Once you resolve that issue, then you can start re-focusing on what to do with the charges.
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