QUESTION
What happens if I accidentally missed a court date for a DUI?
Asked on Sep 06th, 2011 on Criminal Law - New York
More details to this question:
I had my first DUI and I went to the first two court dates, and they were months apart. Now I have accidentally missed this last calendar call and will get into big trouble. I don't want them to come to my house and arrest me.
36 ANSWERS
Drunk Driving Attorney serving Spencer, MA
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Law Office of Ernest T. Biando LLC
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The court would issue a default warrant-which means if you get stopped you will be arrested. A surrender needs to take place to set the case back on the docket-contact the office to discuss.
Answered on Sep 14th, 2011 at 2:04 PM
Roianne Houlton Conner
Contact the Court immediately and request a new date and be there.
Answered on Sep 12th, 2011 at 9:07 AM
Criminal Law Attorney serving Worcester, MA
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Gregory Casale, Attorney at Law
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Go to the court as soon as possible and turn yourself in. There is most likely a warrant for your arrest. You should have an attorney for an OUI/DUI. Make sure your attorney appears with you when you turn yourself in so they don't hold you on bail.
Answered on Sep 09th, 2011 at 11:12 AM
Drug Charges Attorney serving Houston, TX
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Cynthia Henley
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Contact your lawyer IMMEDIATELY as well as your bonding company. Some times some counties give a little leeway but not usually. A warrant probably issued for your arrest and you will likely need to make a new and higher bond.
Answered on Sep 09th, 2011 at 6:14 AM
Appellate Practice Attorney serving Clinton Township, MI
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Thomas J. Tomko, Attorney at Law
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First, you should ask your attorney.. If you do not have one, you should consider hiring one. Often times, an attorney can help with this situation and you can avoid an arrest that is inconvenient and embarrassing.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 3:12 PM
Michael J. Breczinski
You should get ahold of your attorney and go to court and turn yourself in. Every judge I know goes easier on the person who turns themselves in.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 3:05 PM
Criminal Defense Attorney serving Lake Charles, LA
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Michael R. Garber
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A warrant for your arrest is issued when you miss a court date. They won't come to your house to arrest you but if you get stopped for any reason you'll go to jail. You need to answer to the bench warrant and get it recalled.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 3:05 PM
Jacob P. Sartz
I'd recommend you retain an attorney, contact your attorney, or request council from the court. You may have a bench warrant for your arrest. Failing to appear at court in most criminal charges often results in a bench warrant and possible bond forfeiture. In addition to potentially forfeiting your bond, your bond is a court-order. If you disobey a court-order, the judge could impose criminal sanctions, including jail time. Please review the terms and conditions of your bond carefully. If you did allegedly violate the terms and conditions, you will need to turn yourself in. I'd recommend you retain council or request that the court appoint you a lawyer.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 3:05 PM
Daniel Kieth Martin
Depending on the circumstances of the DUI you could have been charged with a misdemeanor or felony. The majority of DUI cases are charged as misdemeanors so I will answer this question under the assumption that you were charged with a misdemeanor. They are not likely to come to home to arrest you however they have the authority to do that. If you were pulled over while driving to work or any other place you would probably be arrested so you have to fix the problem. If you do not have your own private attorney then you will go to the calendaring department of the court you have been going to and ask to be placed back on calendar. Then go to the hearing on the date you are given.Be prepared to explain why you missed the court date. 'I forgot' is not a good explanation. If you truly did forget then explain the other things that were going on in your life that caused you to forget. (family crisis, work crisis etc) I am not just saying this because I am a criminal defense attorney but hiring a criminal defense attorney can improve the odds that you will not go to jail for failing to appear. There is no guarantee, but having a private lawyer usually helps in these situations. Good luck.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 3:03 PM
Bankruptcy Attorney serving Federal Way, WA
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Freeborn Law Offices P.S.
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When you miss a scheduled court date, the judge issues a warrant for your arrest. If you have no criminal history then it is doubtful that the police will actually come to your home and arrest you. You need to contact the court to get the hearing rescheduled. The court will tell you how to do it. You may want to have an attorney assist you with this. It is serious to miss a court date.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 1:18 PM
Gary Moore
You must call the court immediately and explain what happened. You need to hire an attorney.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 1:05 PM
Transportation Attorney serving Mamaroneck, NY
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Palumbo & Associates, PC
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There is a warrant for your arrest. Call your lawyer to arrange a surrender - if you do not have a lawyer we can represent you.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 1:00 PM
Adoptions Attorney serving Lansing, MI
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Austin Legal Services, PLC
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Almost anytime you are a no-show for a court date, a bench warrant will be issued for your arrest. You need to get it taken care of as soon as possible otherwise it will always be hanging over your head and you can't get your DUI case resolved until the Failure to Appear is taken care of. The judge could send you to jail as punishment, but depending on what your excuse is this may or may not occur. Have a lawyer represent you if you don't have one already.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 12:40 PM
Steven D. Dunnings
You could be arrested and your bond revoked. You need to contact the prosecuting attorney and the court to turn yourself in, or at least, request a show cause hearing to explain why you did not show up and why your bond should not be revoked. Have you contacted pre-trial services?
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 12:22 PM
Criminal Defense Attorney serving Birmingham, AL
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The Harris Firm, LLC
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You should have already hired an attorney. A DUI is something that is too serious to try to defend yourself. If you haven't hired an attorney yet, you certainly need to hire one now. A Failure To Appear has likely been added to your charges and a warrant issued for your arrest. An attorney can probably help alleviate some of that.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 9:53 AM
Contact the court and explain your situation. You can ask to have the matter rescheduled or make arrangements to appear and explain what happened. Doing nothing will end with a warrant for your arrest.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 9:40 AM
Criminal Law Attorney serving Oakland, CA
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Dennis Roberts A Professional Corporation
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Go right to court and ask the clerk to put you on the calendar. When you get before the judge, explain the problem. Your problem is that there is probably a warrant and if you get stopped for speeding, etc you will go to jail, so deal with this immediately. Did you have a lawyer or a Public Defender. If so, get hold of them immediately.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 9:19 AM
It is likely a bench warrant was issued, but not likely that anybody will be coming for you. Call your attorney or the court to set a quash hearing on the warrant.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 9:06 AM
In order to properly defend your DUI case, you should hire an attorney that will fight for you. This will also enable your attorney to possibly prevent an arrest warrant from being issued should you happen to miss a court date.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 9:02 AM
Hello- There is likely a warrant out for your arrest. You should contact the court right away to try and get your bond reinstated. They like that more than you showing up in custody.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 8:46 AM
The answer to your question depends upon the court in which you failed to appear. Some municipal courts will send a postcard or letter out giving you a new court date. Other courts will simply issue a warrant for your arrest. In most cases, your attorney can enter an appearance,have the warrant recalled, and get a new court date set without the need for you to be taken into custody and post a bond. So, if you do not already have an attorney, you should hire one as soon as possible. I may be able to offer my services to you for a reasonable price. I have handled hundreds of DWI cases in the thirty-three years that I have been practicing law.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 8:41 AM
Call the court immediately, tell them you forgot and whatever and ask that they set you up a new date.Ask if they call recall the warrant that would have been issued.It is a new violation of the law to miss a court day.Take care of this now so it doesn't get worse.If you get arrested on the warrant, the judge will believe that you were evading the case and it will not be the best for you.Go! Now!
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 8:36 AM
Criminal Law Attorney serving Los Angeles, CA
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Law Office of Edward J. Blum
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Go in tomorrow. Go to clerk's office. Call case and have warrant recalled.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 8:33 AM
Small Businesses Attorney serving Livonia, MI
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Klisz Law Office, PLLC
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Get a lawyer ASAP to stem the damage already done.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 8:24 AM
The way to prevent this is to get your matter put on calendar and explain to the judge why you missed the last court date. Hopefully you have started making payments toward your fines and enrolled in your required alcohol school. Call me with any questions.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 8:17 AM
Criminal Defense Attorney serving Montrose, NY
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Law Office of Jared Altman
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Contact the court right away and find out when your case will be on next and make sure you're there. If a warrant has been issued then make arrangements with your attorney to surrender. You don't want to get charged with bail jumping. Even if there were no terms of bail you can still get charged for missing your court date.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 7:32 AM
3 Awards
If you miss court you will usually have a warrant for your arrest. You need to hire an attorney and get a bail bondsman.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 7:15 AM
Criminal Trial Attorney serving San Jose, CA
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Law Office of Thomas F. Mueller
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When you miss a court date a warrant is issued and you are subject to arrest at any time. You or an attorney can usually get the warrant recalled by making a request to the judge through the court clerk. The court clerk is located in the building the court is located.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 6:15 AM
Criminal Law Attorney serving Howell, MI
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Law Offices of Jules N. Fiani
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There will be a bench warrant out for your arrest.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 6:15 AM
If you have proof that you were there for the first two dates you need to go into the court and have the clerk put you on the calendar for that day. Explain to the judge what happened and you should be OK.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 6:07 AM
Assault and Battery Attorney serving Tacoma, WA
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Michael Maltby, Attorney at Law
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Just call the court and ask them how to proceed. Courts usually allow defendants a time to come in address there failure to appear. I am sure there was a warrant issued. Usually if you contact the court soon and get in before a judge, the judge will recall the warrant or quash the warrant or, if the warrant is served upon your appearance, let you remain on the bail as previouslt imposed.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 5:58 AM
Drug Crimes Attorney serving Philadelphia, PA
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Laguzzi Law, P.C.
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Just call your attorney and make arrangements to turn yourself in as soon as possible. Next time if you cannot make it in, call your attorney and they can ask to accept service for you.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 5:57 AM
3 Awards
Different counties treat it differently, but you probably have a warrant out for your arrest. If this was just in the last 2 days, a call to the court clerk may prevent a warrant from issuing. If it is beyond 2 days, the warrant has issued. If you were on bond prior to missing your court date, call your bondsman to try to help you fix this. If you were not on bond, you should call a bondsman to help you get bonded out when you turn yourself in. The court can enter a judgment on the DUI against you. You need to contact the court to say that you do not want this to happen. You have about 7 days. If you have an attorney (public defender), contact him/her. If you do nothing, eventually they will arrest you.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 5:57 AM
You better get a lawyer to go to court to recall the warrant. That's much better than going to court by yourself and possibly being taken into custody.
Answered on Sep 08th, 2011 at 5:55 AM
Criminal Defense Attorney serving Orange, CA
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Law Office of Joe Dane
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By missing a court date, odds are a warrant either will or already did go out for your arrest. Assuming it wasn't that long ago, you may be able to get it recalled and fix things. Contact your attorney to discuss getting the case back on calendar to recall the warrant and get you back on track.
Answered on Sep 07th, 2011 at 3:23 PM
Personal Injury Attorney serving New York, NY
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Rothstein Law PLLC
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A bench warrant for your arrest was likely issued. After 30 days, you can be charged with bail jumping (even if you didn't have to post bail). I suggest you call your lawyer and make arrangements to go into court voluntarily. Most judges will be understanding if you go in yourself.
Answered on Sep 07th, 2011 at 3:22 PM