Legal Question in DUI Law in California

If I have a bench warrant and I go into court without being on the calender to get it fixed, will I be arrested?


Asked on 4/22/12, 10:04 pm

3 Answers from Attorneys

Joe Dane Law Office of Joe Dane

There is always the risk that you're taken into custody pending further hearings.

What matters is why the warrant was issued. Was it because you failed to appear - either initially or at some other stage? Is this a probation violation? Did you pick up a new case?

There's more to this than just the fact that a warrant has been issued for your arrest.

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Answered on 4/22/12, 10:18 pm
Terry A. Nelson Nelson & Lawless

No guarantees, but probably not, since you are showing good faith by doing so.

To properly handle warrants, you must turn yourself into the issuing court, with or without an attorney, and try to negotiate a recall of the warrant[s] and a plea bargain on the new �Failure to Appear� charge. You�ll try to negotiate bail reduction or OR release. You�ll try to negotiate a plea bargain or take to trial the outstanding charges that caused the warrant. Turning yourself in voluntarily will result in a better outcome than being brought in cuffs to court after arrest on the warrant. On felony charges, the defendant must be personally present at every court hearing and appearance. On misdemeanors and infractions, the attorney can appear in court without the defendant being present, and any plea bargain deal could be handled by notarized paperwork. Effective plea-bargaining, using whatever legal defenses, facts and sympathies there may be, could possibly keep you out of jail/prison, or at least dramatically reduce it. Unless you're competent to effectively represent yourself in court against a professional prosecutor trying to put you in jail, most people hire an attorney who can.

If serious about hiring counsel to help in this, and if this is in SoCal courts, feel free to contact me.

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Answered on 4/23/12, 4:35 pm


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