Warrants: What They Are and What They Mean
Posted on May 21, 2008
Filed Under Criminal Law |
In California, both arrest warrants and bench warrants are orders from a court or judge. Arrest warrants and bench warrants can be Federal or State issued and are executed by a law enforcement officer.
A warrant refers to a specific type of authorization. Often on police shows such as “Law and Order” the detectives will search a place with a warrant issued by a judge. And there are many different types of warrants, arrest warrants, bench warrants, search warrants and so forth.
A bench warrant allows for the immediate arrest of the individual named in the warrant. These can be issued for a “failure to appear” violation.
An arrest warrant is a warrant issued by and on behalf of the state, which authorizes the arrest and detention of an individual. An arrest warrant can be issued for any number of reasons.
A search warrant is issued by the court and allows police officials to do an official search of an area for evidence of a criminal offense.
Warrants are mostly issued by the courts, however they aren’t fool proof. They can name people incorrectly, and this can lead to the seizure of a person’s assets. Warrants must be specific by nature, and if police confiscate items that aren’t covered under the warrant they have in hand, this can be brought up in court.
There can even be a warrant out against you for failing to appear in traffic court if the violations are stiff enough. These warrants are no joke, they can lead to jail time, fines and probation.
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