What do you do if you have a Warrant for your Arrest
Finding out you have a warrant for your arrest can be a scary thing. You may not be sure what you are being charged for with or what you can do to avoid jail time. I recommend that you take the following steps if you find yourself in this situation.
SEE IF BAIL HAD BEEN SET
You should first go online and look if bail has been set. This information can be found at mycase.in.gov. If you have enough to cover the bail amount you should contact your county jail or clerk to see where you need to go to post bond
HIRE AN ATTORNEY TO MODIFY BAIL
If the bail amount is too high, you can hire an attorney to modify bail. There are situations where the amount can be lowered or the type of bond can be modified. For instance, in Indiana, we have surety bonds and PR bonds, with a surety bond you hire a bondsman and usually pay 10% of the bail amount. With a PR bond, the court allows a family member to pay 10% of the bail amount. You should contact an attorney to discuss what type of bond you should post in your case.
FINDS A BONDSMAN
If the court requires a surety bond, you should find a bondsman who can post a bond for your release . There are usually several bondsmen close to the courthouse and jail and they can be a great resource when navigating the system to secure yours or a family members release.
SURRENDER
If you are unable to post bond, you may need to surrender yourself on the outstanding warrant. It is generally better to make arrangements to surrender yourself rather than be taken into custody. For instance you could be picked up on your warrant while in a neighboring county. In these situations you could have to wait a couple days to be picked up by the county where your case is pending.
RECALL WARRANT
Depending on the facts and level of your case, you may be able to file a motion to recall the warrant and get a court date set in due course. This is often times up to the discretion of a judge and an attorney could help you file this motion. When the warrant is recalled it goes away and you can show up to court at the next court date on your own.