Fail to Appear in Court
If you've realized that you missed your court date, the typical consequence is the issuance
of a warrant for your arrest by the judge. If the missed appearance was for photographs
and fingerprints, the police will generally be responsible for issuing the warrant.
It may be possible to have the warrant for your arrest canceled, depending on when it was
issued. Typically, after two or three days, it becomes more challenging to have the warrant
canceled. In such cases, a defense lawyer can assist by making arrangements for the
accused person to surrender themselves to the police for warrant processing.
Surrendering yourself does not necessarily mean you will be charged with failing to
appear in court. In some instances, a defense lawyer might be able to convince the police
that the accused person simply forgot the date of their appearance, leading to the
potential avoidance of a charge for failing to appear.
After surrendering to the police for failing to appear, the accused person will usually be
required to go through processing at the police station and then brought to the
courthouse for a bail hearing. If the charge of failing to appear has not been added by the
police officer, the accused person might be released based on the terms of their previous
release related to the underlying offense for which they missed the court date. However,
there's also a risk of going through the process of obtaining bail for the new charge and
potentially losing bail on the underlying charge.
Regarding penalties for failing to appear in court, it is possible to be found guilty without
receiving a criminal conviction in some cases. Judges have the authority to impose jail
sentences, with a maximum of two years for the offense. Regardless of the penalty, a
finding of guilt for failing to appear will be a significant factor in any future bail hearing to
determine whether the accused person should be released on bail.
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