Paul Puri & Associates San Francisco Criminal Defense Law Firm

If you have missed a court date where you were ordered to appear, the judge may have issued a bench warrant. This means that the police or sheriffs can arrest you if (for any reason) you are stopped and asked to present identification. Also, a few times per year, most law enforcement agencies perform what are called "warrant sweeps," where they pull all the outstanding warrants from the computer and go around arresting people.

There is a way for you to clear up this warrant without having to go to jail. The method is simple:

1. Arrive at 8:30 a.m. to court with your attorney; go to the clerk's office and add the matter to calendar. It helps if you know your court number, but if you don't, your attorney can find out the court number with your true full name and date of birth.
2. Often times you can get the matter heard in the department where the case originated the same day (often the same morning). However, if you do not get the matter on calendar the same day, then at least the clerk can give you a court date within a few days.
3. Appear in court with your attorney, and ask the court "to recall and discharge the bench warrant." The court will want to know why you did not make it to your last court appearance. The reasons the court will consider are as follows: (a) you were confused about court dates, either because you were not notified, or because there was an error on the printed calendar, and you made every effort to clear it up; (b) you were sick and in the hospital; (c) you were in jail; and (d) you do not have a long history of missing court dates.

The fact that you made the effort to come to court and clear up the bench warrant is usually good enough reason for the judge to recall the bench warrant. It also helps if you have a lawyer that practices in criminal courts often, because the judge will likely take the lawyer's representation that he or she will get into court on the next date. There are those mean judges that like to punish those who miss court dates. You probably know if your judge is like that. Be sure to tell your lawyer who the judge was, so that he or she can research the particular judge's proclivities.