old out-of-state bench warrant coming back to haunt us

[PLShelp128]

I have a loved one that was pulled over a few days ago in the state that we are currently living (Midwest) on a minor traffic violation (example: failure to stop at a stop sign). When the cops ran his information they told him he had a warrant in NY from 10+ years ago and took him to jail. We were floored by this information. Based on the year of the warrant he was able to tie it to an incident that occurred at that time in which he was in a fight with another person – very much akin to a common “bar fight” between two people that don’t know each other – for which he (and the other person involved in the fight) was arrested and taken to jail. In jail in NY at that time he was in the same area as the other person and they had discussed it and both agreed that neither was going to press charges. Neither party sustained significant injuries. Apparently he was seen in front of a judge for the charge of “assault 2” and let go….. Apparently with the stipulation that he was supposed to appear in court at a later date, which he did not do.

Fast-forward 10+ years later: now we know there’s a bench warrant for this and he’s being held in jail in our state. At no point was he able to speak to an attorney to understand his rights but the very next day he appeared in front of a judge and they demanded he either “waive extradition” or choose to undergo an “extradition trial”. When he expressed frustration at not knowing what that actually meant the judge had a bit of an attitude with him and demanded that he make his decision. Thank GOD a public defender that happened to be there for another case took pity on him and offered to take him into a back room to explain things to him. After hearing what those words actually meant he “waived extradition” and the defense attorney took me aside to explain to me what this meant. He also suggested that I contact a NY lawyer immediately to find out the particulars of this warrant.

So that’s what I went home and did. I contacted every NY lawyer I could find that was willing to talk to me. All I know was that he had a warrant for “assault 2” in NY from 10+ years ago and was being held in our state awaiting extradition. By means of talking to him (btw did you know that it actually COSTS MONEY to be in jail and be able to talk to your loved ones via phone??? I didn’t!!! But I do now.) I learned the particulars of the situation as explained above. Every lawyer I spoke with was willing to go over the shpeal of what extradition meant etc but none was willing to actually look up his case so they could give me specific advice on his particular case… all they heard was “assault 2” and they said that since it’s a felony charge they would require a minimum charge of $5000 + to represent him.
Now first of all, I do NOT have that kind of money to drop. Period. It’s just not an option. But also, I’m not stupid. I know that if the particulars of this case were known, that maybe it would be a lot more simple than a “felony warrant” case. Why would NY spend thousands of dollars to send police officers to our state to extradite him on a case that was for failure to appear in court for a completely dead case without active complainants? I might not be familiar with the judicial system but I knew there was more to this case than these “for profit” lawyers were making it seem to me. So I decided to dig deeper. After being given a “up-front” estimate of $1500 to simply look in to the case by a NY lawyer and being at the end of my rope I told him that quite simply I do not have that kind of money but I deserve to at least know the details of this warrant that is keeping my loved one in jail in our state for this long and shouldn’t have to spend money to do that. He then took pity on me and referred me to Legal Aide. It took me speaking to OVER 20 lawyers to learn about this free legal service.
I called them and they FINALLY actually looked up his particular case. I have a case number!! The receptionist then transferred me to one of their attorneys to go over his case and give me advice… FOR FREE! He was able to tell me the name of the public defenders firm that covered his case so many years ago (unfortunately it wasn’t them). He told me that based on what he could see (which was admittedly limited because it wasn’t their firm that defended him), it was highly unlikely that NY would extradite him based on these charges. He told me to contact that firm as soon as possible because they would have more details and could possibly expedite the process of determining whether or not NY would extradite. I was SO GRATEFUL to speak to someone that actually knew SOMETHING about his particular case!!! Of course… this conversation ended just after 5PM (#sadface) so I had to wait until the next day to call that public defender office that defended him.

I spent the entire next day calling that office… I became BFF’s with the receptionist. I learned that the lawyer that covered his case back then was no longer employed there but I should be able to speak with one of the senior attorneys and they should still be able to help me out. I left at least 2 messages by phone and, when I didn’t hear from them by 5pm, I figured out how to send that particular attorney an email from their website. I attempted to eloquently relay our story via email and went to bed feeling completely helpless because it was yet another day spent trying to get justice for my loved one in vain. He is still sitting in jail being treated like a common criminal without any rights.
To my surprise and delight the very next day I get a call exactly at 9AM (which is apparently when the law world starts the day… I’m in the medical field so that’s much more like lunch time to me) from said attorney and they tell me that they have his file in front of them and they are going to contact the DA and the extradition division to see what’s really going on. I was delighted. They even told me – albeit hesitantly and with the stipulation of “not wanting to give false hope” – that given that this case would likely never amount to anything that it could possibly be “squashed”?? which I figured meant dismissed. I spent all day eagerly awaiting a phone call for an update. Got no such thing. At around 4ish I called again and left a message telling said attorney that I understand how busy they are and don’t want to be obnoxious but really just wanted an update… any kind of update… even if it’s just that you were completely bogged down today and didn’t have a chance to get to our case. Nothing… I am getting ready to again, go to bed without any sense of accomplishment and knowing that my loved one is STILL sitting in jail, being treated as a common criminal and the scum of the earth without any rights.

So after that very lengthy explanation of how we came to be in this situation (and I want to thank anyone who has taken the time to actually read through all of this and is still with me)… my question in regards to LEGAL ADVICE is: when I talk to the public defender attorney tomorrow (which happens to be Friday and I really want him released from jail before the weekend)…what kind of questions do I need to ask? Particularly I want to know information that I can relay to a for-profit attorney that might help him getting released. I can’t affort$50000 but if I can get a lower price based on the information that I have learned since the beginning, I will do anything I can to get him out of that hell hole. I know I need to know if he has been indicted. I know I need to know if there are any active witnesses or evidence that would make the case still active. Any advice on how to deal with it if NY doesn’t’ want to extradite him but he’s still being held in jail. Any of that would be super helpful

Thanks!

PS… I don’t want anyone to think that we aren’t willing and prepared to take accountability for the initial warrant and charges. He knows he really F*Cked up by not showing up to that court date and we have all intentions of taking care of this. Any time you might have gleaned anger towards the system from my above comments, it is not because of why he has this charge… it’s just how he’s been treated since we’ve all been made aware of it.

 

[quincy]

I have a loved one that was pulled over a few days ago in the state that we are currently living (Midwest) on a minor traffic violation (example: failure to stop at a stop sign). When the cops ran his information they told him he had a warrant in NY from 10+ years ago and took him to jail ...

In what Midwestern state do you live?

... Fast-forward 10+ years later: now we know there’s a bench warrant for this and he’s being held in jail in our state. At no point was he able to speak to an attorney to understand his rights but the very next day he appeared in front of a judge and they demanded he either “waive extradition” or choose to undergo an “extradition trial”. When he expressed frustration at not knowing what that actually meant the judge had a bit of an attitude with him and demanded that he make his decision. Thank GOD a public defender that happened to be there for another case took pity on him and offered to take him into a back room to explain things to him. After hearing what those words actually meant he “waived extradition” and the defense attorney took me aside to explain to me what this meant. He also suggested that I contact a NY lawyer immediately to find out the particulars of this warrant.

The attorney you spoke to was nice to help out your loved one and also to speak to you. How old is your loved one? Is there some reason you need to speak for him (e.g., he does not speak English, he has special needs ...)?

... All I know was that he had a warrant for “assault 2” in NY from 10+ years ago and was being held in our state awaiting extradition ... none was willing to actually look up his case so they could give me specific advice on his particular case… all they heard was “assault 2” and they said that since it’s a felony charge they would require a minimum charge of $5000 + to represent him.

Now first of all, I do NOT have that kind of money to drop. Period.

It will be your loved one who needs to "drop" the money for an attorney, not you - although you can certainly help to pay for an attorney and, if your loved one is indigent, an attorney can be appointed.

Attorneys, by the way, will generally not do any in-depth research on cases until they are hired and, once hired, they generally will not discuss their clients' cases with anyone but their clients.

He then took pity on me and referred me to Legal Aide ... I have a case number!!

YOU have a case number? Do you mean your relative who is sitting in jail has a case number?

The receptionist then transferred me to one of their attorneys to go over his case and give me advice… FOR FREE! He was able to tell me the name of the public defenders firm that covered his case so many years ago (unfortunately it wasn’t them). He told me that based on what he could see (which was admittedly limited because it wasn’t their firm that defended him), it was highly unlikely that NY would extradite him based on these charges. He told me to contact that firm as soon as possible because they would have more details and could possibly expedite the process of determining whether or not NY would extradite. I was SO GRATEFUL to speak to someone that actually knew SOMETHING about his particular case!!! Of course… this conversation ended just after 5PM (#sadface) so I had to wait until the next day to call that public defender office that defended him.

It was nice that you found a legal aid office willing to look up your relative's case for you and provide you with some information and advice (which I assume you will pass on to the one in jail). Your relative can ask for a public defender when he is in New York.

He is still sitting in jail being treated like a common criminal without any rights.

He is sitting in jail awaiting extradition because he was arrested on a warrant for failure to appear on a felony assault case in New York. He now needs an attorney in New York.

when I talk to the public defender attorney tomorrow (which happens to be Friday and I really want him released from jail before the weekend)…what kind of questions do I need to ask? ...

The public defender will be representing your relative, not you. Is it possible for your relative to ask the public defender questions?

Particularly I want to know information that I can relay to a for-profit attorney that might help him getting released.

You can hire a private attorney for your loved one if you want to and this attorney will contact the public defender. You will not have to relay any information to the attorney.

Who are you in relation to the person sitting in jail? This is really his problem, you know (although it is nice that you want to help him).

 

[PLShelp128]

He is my fiance AKA common law husband as we have been living together for 5+ years. I'm trying to be vague because I know that online information is public information. He is completely verbal and developmentally normal. He is in his 30s as am I. He has been provided nothing since being detained in our State's jail - he has never been offered the opportunity to speak to a public defender and when I reached out to their office they said that they couldn't do anything unless he was court appointed to a public defender and, given the charges, I would need to hire a criminal defense lawyer, which again, I can not afford. I have paid for him to be able to speak with me over the phone and I have been using the info he provides me to obtain the information that I disclosed. I completely understand the stereotypes places on people that find themselves in these situations but I can assure you that we do not fit them. We are both highly educated people and are simply finding ourselves in a situation that we have no understanding of and I am simply trying to use every avenue I know to employ to be able to navigate this very confusing world we have found ourselves in

 

[quincy]

He is my fiance AKA common law husband as we have been living together for 5+ years. I'm trying to be vague because I know that online information is public information. He is completely verbal and developmentally normal. He is in his 30s as am I. He has been provided nothing since being detained in our State's jail - he has never been offered the opportunity to speak to a public defender and when I reached out to their office they said that they couldn't do anything unless he was court appointed to a public defender and, given the charges, I would need to hire a criminal defense lawyer, which again, I can not afford. I have paid for him to be able to speak with me over the phone and I have been using the info he provides me to obtain the information that I disclosed. I completely understand the stereotypes places on people that find themselves in these situations but I can assure you that we do not fit them. We are both highly educated people and are simply finding ourselves in a situation that we have no understanding of and I am simply trying to use every avenue I know to employ to be able to navigate this very confusing world we have found ourselves in

Very simply, there is nothing that you can do for your fiancé but help him pay for an attorney, this if he chooses a private attorney and/or doesn't qualify for a public defender.

When your fiancé waived extradition, he consented to being returned to New York. New York has a few (10?) days to make arrangements to pick him up to transport him back to New York. Until New York picks him up, he sits in jail. If they do not pick him up as arranged, he will be released from the jail where he is currently sitting.

Once in New York, your fiancé has to defend against the felony assault charge (http://codes.findlaw.com/ny/penal-law/pen-sect-120-05.html) and its possible penalties should he be convicted (http://ypdcrime.com/penal.law/article70.htm), and he complicated matters for himself by not appearing for his court hearing as ordered 10 years ago and being picked up on a warrant instead. This in itself is a crime.

The felony your fiancé is charged with sounds more serious than a simple bar fight. He will not want to be without an attorney when he gets to New York.

 

[Ohiogal]

He is my fiance AKA common law husband as we have been living together for 5+ years. I'm trying to be vague because I know that online information is public information. He is completely verbal and developmentally normal. He is in his 30s as am I. He has been provided nothing since being detained in our State's jail - he has never been offered the opportunity to speak to a public defender and when I reached out to their office they said that they couldn't do anything unless he was court appointed to a public defender and, given the charges, I would need to hire a criminal defense lawyer, which again, I can not afford. I have paid for him to be able to speak with me over the phone and I have been using the info he provides me to obtain the information that I disclosed. I completely understand the stereotypes places on people that find themselves in these situations but I can assure you that we do not fit them. We are both highly educated people and are simply finding ourselves in a situation that we have no understanding of and I am simply trying to use every avenue I know to employ to be able to navigate this very confusing world we have found ourselves in

Bench warrants don't go away and the STATE is the complainant in a criminal case. He ran for 10 years. It caught up to him and he will have to take care of this. Even if they decide not to extradite him, the warrant will STILL be out there. And yes your fiancé fits the "stereotypes" if you mean he has been accused of a felony and he has criminal charges which he has avoided dealing with for a decade. He needs to man up and show up and take care of the criminal charges. They are NOT going away until he deals with them which may mean going to trial or taking a plea.

 

[PLShelp128]

Bench warrants don't go away and the STATE is the complainant in a criminal case. He ran for 10 years. It caught up to him and he will have to take care of this. Even if they decide not to extradite him, the warrant will STILL be out there. And yes your fiancé fits the "stereotypes" if you mean he has been accused of a felony and he has criminal charges which he has avoided dealing with for a decade. He needs to man up and show up and take care of the criminal charges. They are NOT going away until he deals with them which may mean going to trial or taking a plea.

This is SO FRUSTRATING! why does everyone in the judicial system seem to think in such black and white terms?? 1) how can you accuse him of "being on the run" from a warrant he wasn't aware of??? 2) as I made extremely clear in the original post, WE UNDERSTAND THAT THIS NEEDS TO BE TAKEN CARE OF AND HAVE EVERY INTENTION OF DOING SO!! i am NOT asking how he can "get out of this" I am simply asking if there is any way for me to advocate for him so we can limit the amount of time he has to spend in jail

 

[CdwJava]

You cannot successfully "advocate" for him since you are not his attorney and have no legal standing in his criminal case. Only an attorney licensed to practice in the state where he is held, or where the warrant(s) were issued can assist him.

 

[HighwayMan]

why does everyone in the judicial system seem to think in such black and white terms?? 1) how can you accuse him of "being on the run" from a warrant he wasn't aware of???

You are the one who is frustrating for us. You don't get it.

This IS black and white. He failed to show up in court to answer a felony charge. He should have been told during his first appearance (which was probably his arraignment) that his failure to appear would result in a warrant. HE SHOULD HAVE KNOWN.

No one just blows off a court appearance, especially for a felony, without repercussions.

I am simply asking if there is any way for me to advocate for him so we can limit the amount of time he has to spend in jail

NO. There is NOTHING you can do to "advocate". Your only involvement can be to hire him an attorney. You have no control over his being in jail.

 

[HighwayMan]

New York has a few (10?) days to make arrangements to pick him up to transport him back to New York.

I'm not sure what the legal limitation is, but typically when we get a request from an out-of-state agency in cases like this, it's for 15 days.

 

[quincy]

I'm not sure what the legal limitation is, but typically when we get a request from an out-of-state agency in cases like this, it's for 15 days.

Thanks, HighwayMan.

I thought there might be differences between the states in how many days they have to make arrangements to pick up a fugitive. I am pretty sure that the longest a fugitive can be held in jail awaiting extradition is 30 days so the fiancé will either be picked up by New York within that time, or released.

 

[HighwayMan]

Of course, if he is released he could end up going through the same thing over and over again until he appears in court and gets his warrant vacated.

 

[quincy]

Of course, if he is released he could end up going through the same thing over and over again until he appears in court and gets his warrant vacated.

True. It would be nice to know in what Midwestern state jail the fiancé currently sits and in what city in New York the warrant was issued, this to better guess at whether the fiancé is likely to be picked up by New York or released back into the wild.

Either way, PLShelp128 might want to plan on being apart from her fiancé for a good period of time at some point in time in the future.

 

[justalayman]

I'm not sure what the legal limitation is, but typically when we get a request from an out-of-state agency in cases like this, it's for 15 days.

Depending on the state, he can be held for at least 30 days and normally won't be released before 30 days if New York doesn't respond. That's sometimes the problem; the defendant is held. The state that issued the warrant is notified and sometimes they just don't respond. The hold is typically 30 days and they are released if the holding state isn't given notice the other state will pick up the defendant. The requesting state can ask the holding state for an extension. There is no obligation to hold the defendant Beyond the 30
Days.

There is no obligation the defendant be offered bail while being held awaiting extradition. Some requesting states do allow bail to be posted; others not


PLSHelp128,

At this point your fiance is considered a common criminal.

Also, no state recognizes common law marriage based on only the time cohabitating.

 

[PLShelp128]

You cannot successfully "advocate" for him since you are not his attorney and have no legal standing in his criminal case. Only an attorney licensed to practice in the state where he is held, or where the warrant(s) were issued can assist him.

So the only way to "advocate" for someone I love is to hire an attorney? What about everyone (including myself at the moment) that can't afford to hire an attorney? I guess we don't matter to the judicial system?

... yeah... that seems fair and judicial.

You are the one who is frustrating for us. You don't get it.

This IS black and white. He failed to show up in court to answer a felony charge. He should have been told during his first appearance (which was probably his arraignment) that his failure to appear would result in a warrant. HE SHOULD HAVE KNOWN.

No one just blows off a court appearance, especially for a felony, without repercussions.





NO. There is NOTHING you can do to "advocate". Your only involvement can be to hire him an attorney. You have no control over his being in jail.

again... the only thing I can do is to hire an attorney with money I don't have to advocate for him??? really???

I understand that trolling is a common occurrence on these threads and I don't intend to advocate for this so I would really like to not reply to your comment regarding how the judicial system thinks of everything in black and white.... but I feel the need to say with absolute confidence that everything is NOT black and white. Your comment only makes me want to dismiss everything you say.

Of course, if he is released he could end up going through the same thing over and over again until he appears in court and gets his warrant vacated.

I get that. that is why I want to get some legal advice on how to expedite this process of getting this taken care of. Never once did I say we want to avoid this charge. now that we know about it, we intend to take care of it. period.

At no point in this process has anyone been willing to talk to us about our legal choices without a hefty charge. hence why I posted on this forum.

Depending on the state, he can be held for at least 30 days and normally won't be released before 30 days if New York doesn't respond. That's sometimes the problem; the defendant is held. The state that issued the warrant is notified and sometimes they just don't respond. The hold is typically 30 days and they are released if the holding state isn't given notice the other state will pick up the defendant. The requesting state can ask the holding state for an extension. There is no obligation to hold the defendant Beyond the 30
Days.

There is no obligation the defendant be offered bail while being held awaiting extradition. Some requesting states do allow bail to be posted; others not


PLSHelp128,

At this point your fiance is considered a common criminal.

Also, no state recognizes common law marriage based on only the time cohabitating.

thank you for actually responding to my original questions. I appreciate that.

On the other hand, I don't really care what "common law marriage" means legally. I only used the term to indicate that we have been together for a very long time. Our finances are one and the same. The money we are spending for him being in jail is shared between us. The money I obviously have to spend on an attorney is something we share. The fact that he's stuck in jail and is unable to contribute to our SHARED account is something that is very important to my argument.

that's the only reason I brought it up.

 

[CTU]

Does he meet the requirements for a Public Defender?