Got a Bench Warrant? Now What
You just found out you have a bench warrant. What next?
Hi, my name is Dale Savage and I’m a Criminal Defense Attorney here in Charleston, South Carolina and today we’re going to talk about bench warrants.
What is a Bench Warrant?
A bench warrant is a court order usually at the request of a prosecutor or clerk of court for failing to appear for your court date. What this means is that any time that law enforcement comes in contact with you, you can be taken into custody, meaning taken to jail. The important things to remember about bench warrants is that there’s no statute of limitations, they don’t expire. So whether that bench warrant was issued this week, this month, a year, or even many years ago, they are still active until a judge rescinds that bench warrant.
Is it just for South Carolina?
They can apply just to the state of South Carolina, or they can even be nation-wide. What that means is you could be in California and if you have an outstanding bench warrant from South Carolina and come in contact with police, they can take you into custody and you’ll remain in jail until that bench warrant is rescinded. And that’s one of the main reasons why it’s so important if you do find out that you have a bench warrant that you contact an attorney immediately to try to resolve those issues for you.
How to Get a Bench Warrant Lifted?
There are typically two ways in which a bench warrant can be rescinded. The first is through consent, meaning that the prosecutor or the clerk of court agrees to rescind the bench warrant. And that’s the most preferable way because what that means is once they reach that agreement, the bench warrant will typically be rescinded that day. And that’s the quickest and fastest resolution. If the prosecutor or the clerk of court is not willing to do that, then the only other option that you have available is to have your attorney to file a motion, and then the court will set that hearing. Once that hearing is set, you will remain in jail until that hearing is heard, and then the judge will make that decision as to whether the bench warrant is going to be rescinded or whether they’re going to deny that motion and you’ll remain in jail until the case is resolved. And this is why it’s so important to retain an attorney once you find out that a warrant is out there for your arrest.
Charleston Criminal Defense Attorney
If you’d like to learn more about bench warrants in South Carolina, you need a Charleston Criminal Defense lawyer, please call me at (843) 530-7813.