Legal Question in Criminal Law in California

Re: jumped bail

A warrant is forever. This implies you have never been stopped by police or had your record checked since then. You could be arrested at any time and taken to court. You should 'deal with it' through an attorney who can help minimize the damage, fines, jail time, etc. Someone who turns himself in under these circumstances, and who has a clean history since, is likely to get a good deal from the court. Not if they catch you involuntarily. Contact me if the court is in So Cal and you want such help.

Re: jumped bail

This person is a fugitive from justice and that fact will remain on his record until he is no longer a fugitive - in other words, until he dies, surrenders, is captured or somehow resolves the outstanding warrant. There is no statute of limitations issue here, and even if there were the clock would have stopped ticking when he left the country.

The warrant for his arrest appears in a nationwide database, where it will likely be found if he tries to enter the country. Even if he gets past the border, he will be exposed if he is questioned by police for anything (speeding is usually what catches these folks) or if he seeks government services like a driver's license, etc.

If he is caught in another part of the country, California will have to decide whether to go through the effort and expense of extraditing him and bringing him back here. If they don't do so within a certain amount of time he will be released. If all he had done was take $3,000 the state might not bother to extradite him, but skipping out on bail and being a fugitive will give the state more reason to pursue the matter.