If the court has issued a bench warrant for you in New Jersey, you need to take that seriously. You could be arrested and imprisoned if you are brought in by the police, even if there is a simple misunderstanding or a good reason for the warrant to be thrown out. This is why you need to address a bench warrant as soon as you possibly can, preferably with the help of a Bergen County criminal defense attorney.
A bench warrant is issued when the subject of the warrant needs to be arrested. One is often issued when someone violates a court order or does not appear at a court hearing. These stay in effect until you are arrested or you fulfill the conditions of the warrant. The judge can also decide to recall the warrant.
When you are notified of a bench warrant being issued against you, you have to act. This is not like a summons. You will be arrested if you do not try to address this. You can spend time in jail, even if it is only a short time in jail while you try to sort things out. Coming at this head-on, with the help of an experienced criminal defense attorney, is often your best option.
As we mentioned, a judge can decide to lift the warrant on their own. The more likely outcome is that the warrant stays in effect until you are arrested. Since we want to avoid that, we should go with the third option which is fulfilling the conditions of the warrant. Sometimes you just need to complete a simple task that the court requires of you. You could have a bench warrant issued because you did not pay a fine or because you are behind on child support. Rectifying these issues can get the warrant and threat of jail time blocked.
If there was a simple misunderstanding, like a notice being sent to the wrong address, your lawyer can also help you address that. We will do everything that we can to help you avoid jail time after a bench warrant is issued.
It is also a good idea to try to avoid the issuance of a bench warrant in the first place. If you are currently engaged in a criminal trial, it may be tough for you to keep track of specific rules or certain dates. A screwup can easily land you in jail, so you may want to talk to a criminal defense attorney who can devote themselves to your case, keep track of important dates, and make sure that you do not get yourself into serious trouble over a simple mistake.
So if you have gotten yourself into a tricky legal situation, do not procrastinate or try to ignore it. Contact the Law Office of Attorney Conway and talk to a professional as soon as possible. We can let you know more about what we can do to help you out and minimize the damage.
© 2024 The Law Office of Kevin T. Conway. All rights reserved.
