Best way to handle CT warrant

[quincy]

Although criminal law is not my field -- and I am not particularly familiar with the laws and practices in Connecticut -- lawyers often are reluctant to take on what often would be a very limited short task in a criminal matter as experience has taught them that once they appear -- even in the very limited role, for what should be an easy part of the process -- the judge may refuse to allow them to withdraw from the case after the first phase and instead assign the lawyer the duty to continue to represent the defendant until the matter is fully resolved. Thus taking on a 2-3 hour assignment for which you'd pay them can turn into a week's long criminal trial that you don't have the money to pay them for, and they can't get out of.

May I suggest that rather than trying to hire an attorney to appear for you in court -- which could result in the attorney being forced by the judge to represent you fully -- see if you can buy an hour or two of the time of an attorney who is experienced in criminal law who might simply provide general guidance on what alternatives there might be should you wish to represent yourself. Spending a lifetime in hiding, or in fear waiting for that "knock on the door," or being worried about being arrested on a warrant for the old charge if you ever are stopped for a traffic violation, can't be a good way to live.

What exactly is your field, InsuranceGuy? I assume it is not any kind of law.

It is rarely a good idea to try to handle a criminal matter on your own.

 

[HighwayMan]

A simple trespass charge is not going to result in a trial in CT unless the defendant is a very bad dude. It's an infraction - not even a misdemeanor. The OP didn't mention anything about his criminal history, but I'm assuming it's pretty clean.

If he would have just appeared in court as scheduled he probably wouldn't have had an issue. The FTA makes things more complicated and he should really have an attorney with him going into court if he's looking to avoid some jail time.

 

[RJR]

I'm not seeing it as an Infraction, the 3 classes are all misdemeanors.

 

[quincy]

A simple trespass charge is not going to result in a trial in CT unless the defendant is a very bad dude. It's an infraction - not even a misdemeanor. The OP didn't mention anything about his criminal history, but I'm assuming it's pretty clean.

If he would have just appeared in court as scheduled he probably wouldn't have had an issue. The FTA makes things more complicated and he should really have an attorney with him going into court if he's looking to avoid some jail time.

He actually didn't even need to appear in court originally on the simple trespass. He just needed to pay the fine on time.

Following is a link to Connecticut's simple trespass infraction. It is a fine only offense, no jail time. It is the failure to appear warrant that is the problem best handled by an attorney.

https://law.justia.com/codes/connecticut/2018/title-53a/chapter-952/section-53a-110a/

 

[RJR]

quince, it's not loading right.

 

[quincy]

quince, it's not loading right.

Sorry. I fixed the link.

 

[RJR]

got it, I got my info from a CT lawyer site, but the link is clear here.

 

[quincy]

got it, I got my info from a CT lawyer site, but the link is clear here.

Although the lawyer on the site you visited was probably speaking to Connecticut's criminal trespass laws (lawyers generally don't mess with fine-only infractions), lawyers also don't always know what they are talking about. Haha.

 

[HighwayMan]

He actually didn't even need to appear in court originally on the simple trespass. He just needed to pay the fine on time.

Correct. The summons has an "answer date" printed on it but for an infraction an appearance is not required - if one is going to plead guilty one may simply mail the fine into the Centralized Infractions Bureau.

My Connecticut Superior Court fine schedule lists the fine for simple trespass (CGS 53a-110a) as a whopping $92.

By "forgetting" about the ticket, the OP is certainly causing himself a lot more than $92 worth of trouble.

 

[quincy]

Correct. The summons has an "answer date" printed on it but for an infraction an appearance is not required - if one is going to plead guilty one may simply mail the fine into the Centralized Infractions Bureau.

My Connecticut Superior Court fine schedule lists the fine for simple trespass (CGS 53a-110a) as a whopping $92.

By "forgetting" about the ticket, the OP is certainly causing himself a lot more than $92 worth of trouble.

Right. His original fine has increased substantially and now there is a misdemeanor charge and jail time of up to a year to worry about.