K
kathkath
Guest
Please help, and thanks. I need to know what happens with a bench warrant in a larger metro area. This happened in Florida.
I missed a court date for a petty theft (shoplifting) charge. When I was arrested they held me in jail overnight and it scared me to death, and after the way I was treated I swore I would not go back. Now there is a bench warrant and I need to know if they will actively search for me or whether they will just passively keep the case open until something else were to happen in the future. If I were to go to the court now would they just give me another court date for this charge or worse, and if so, what would they do? I need to know how bench warrants are usually handled for petty offenses. The jail and court were county facilities. I was taken to a county jail by the local police. I don't know why it wasn't handled at the police station. I asked thenm if I could see a lawyer and they told me no, they just transported me to county jail where a friend bailed me out. Also, what happens to the photos and prints that were taken by the local and county police? Do they go into a national computer for a bench warrant? If anyone can answer all of these questions it will help me know what to expect and to make a decision. I am very scared. Another thing: as a result of being handcuffed I have bruises on the inside and outside of my wrist, and it was swollen. They told me it was my fault for twisting my hands in the cuffs. I also have a bruise on the inside of my upper are where I was roughly handled by the police. I took photos about 5 days later when they were still there but not as bad as they were at first. If someone can answer all of these questions and help me I appreciate it. Thank you.
[Edited by kathkath on 04-22-2001 at 08:07 AM]
I missed a court date for a petty theft (shoplifting) charge. When I was arrested they held me in jail overnight and it scared me to death, and after the way I was treated I swore I would not go back. Now there is a bench warrant and I need to know if they will actively search for me or whether they will just passively keep the case open until something else were to happen in the future. If I were to go to the court now would they just give me another court date for this charge or worse, and if so, what would they do? I need to know how bench warrants are usually handled for petty offenses. The jail and court were county facilities. I was taken to a county jail by the local police. I don't know why it wasn't handled at the police station. I asked thenm if I could see a lawyer and they told me no, they just transported me to county jail where a friend bailed me out. Also, what happens to the photos and prints that were taken by the local and county police? Do they go into a national computer for a bench warrant? If anyone can answer all of these questions it will help me know what to expect and to make a decision. I am very scared. Another thing: as a result of being handcuffed I have bruises on the inside and outside of my wrist, and it was swollen. They told me it was my fault for twisting my hands in the cuffs. I also have a bruise on the inside of my upper are where I was roughly handled by the police. I took photos about 5 days later when they were still there but not as bad as they were at first. If someone can answer all of these questions and help me I appreciate it. Thank you.
[Edited by kathkath on 04-22-2001 at 08:07 AM]