Legal Question in Criminal Law in Missouri

Re: Do 'Failure to Appear' warrants expire ?

No, warrants do not expire. The fact is that a person was given a date to appear in court and failed to do so. That basically makes the person a fugitive from justice, which would prevent the running of any time limitations until the person is apprehended or turns himself or herself in to the authorities. By the way, if you are in this situation I would advise you to hire an attorney. Many times we are able to get such a warrant cancelled. In other cases where the court requires a bond to be posted, an attorney can make the whole process go much easier for the defendant. In some cases the attorney can get the bond reduced or get the court to accept some alternative form of bond which the defendant or his or her family can make. If your case is in the Eastern part of the state I would probably be able to help you myself. You may call me for a free telephone consultation at 314-727-2822.

Re: Do 'Failure to Appear' warrants expire ?

No, they don't expire. They stay in the system as long as the court wants them to stay in the system. Occasionally a court will "purge" old warrants just for the sake of housekeeping, but yours is only a couple of years old so I'm sure it's still there. Meanwhile, your driver's license may be suspended and you are one traffic stop away from going to jail. My advice is to get a lawyer and take care of this thing.