Issued Warrant For Not Appearing

[SeanW727]

Hey guys i'm from new jersey.

Just today in the mail i recieved a letter stating i had a warrant out for my arrest for not appearing in court for Missing my Court Date.
It started off with a seatbelt ticket in which i went to court and the prosecuter told me it would be dropped. I left... Then i get a letter in the mail stating i didn't show up... I didn't know i had to speak with the judge.
They scheduled that ticket and another ticket i had on the same day (which happened to be the 21st) even though i never got a letter in the mail and specifically requested any day but the 21st due to college orientation.
Now i have a warrant out for my arrest and a 550$ Bail.
I cant even afford the ticket let alone the bail... What should i do? This is rediculous.

[moburkes]

Turning yourself in would be a starting point.

[SeanW727]

I cant afford the 550$ bail.

I spoke with the police tonight and they recommended that I goto the court tomorrow and speak with someone there.... But its attatched to the police building and i don't want and can't afford to be arrested on the spot.

I just turned 18 and this is my permanent record i'm dealing with here. I need help ASAP.
Thanks Guys.

[justalayman]

well, your other option is hiring an attorney to attempt to negotiate your paying of whatever fines you have and having the warrant dismissed. Since you already stated youdo not have the money to pay the bail, I aould think you cannot afford an attorney either, so, what do you want? We surely aren;t going to take up a collection for you.

You either turn yourself in or wait for them to pick you up. Not much else you can do.

[Hey There]

.


Consider
Checking the Yellow Pages for a lawyer who does free of reasonable consultations.

#7591—Warrant For failure to Appear
Sept. 2-2007
Questions answered help with solutions.

Was “court required” checked on your ticket?
Do you have written proof
that you notified the Court Administrator at least 7 days before your trial date of your intention to plead not guilty?
that you asked for a continuance?
Is it possible that the court date was changed for the seat-belt citation and you never received a letter notifying you of a new court date and you missed that court date?
Have you asked for and obtained copies of your file at the courthouse?
Was this your only court appearance regarding your seat-belt citation?
Did you appear in the same court on the same day for a different citation?
Did you arrive in court on time for the seat-belt citation?
Do you remember if the judge gave a roll call?
Where you aware that requests for postponements, arraignments, guilty pleas (with attorneys), guilty pleas (without attorneys), not guilty pleas (with attorneys) are heard in court before not guilty (without attorneys) cases are heard?
Did you leave the court before your name was called (or not) because you assumed your citation would be dismissed because of what the prosecutor told you?
Do you have the prosecutor’s name who saw you in court and told you that your seatbelt ticket would be dropped?
Did you notify any of the court personnel before you left?
Were you under 18 when you were cited?

Regarding Bail of $550.00 will that the bail amount be returned if you appear in court regarding the Failure To Appear and ALL charges are dismissed?
Did the letter state that a warrant was out for your arrest OR that a warrant would be issued if you
missed appearing in court for not appearing in court on the seatbelt citation?

Was the court correct in issuing you a warrant and a bail amount which is only issued when a defendant fails to appear for a MANDATORY court appearance?
Could your failure to appear on the seat-belt violation qualify as a payable offense where a FTA notice would be sent to demand payment of fine + $10.00 penalty fee even if it is mandatory to appear in court to enter a not guilty plea?



Think of this as a class assignment. Gather information. Link the information you obtain to your goal.
Get documentation and keep it on hand. The courts do. You need to do the same.

Good Luck .

Hey There