Editing Arrest warrant

{{short description|Warrant authorizing the arrest and detention of an individual}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2016}}

An '''arrest warrant''' is a [[Warrant (law)|warrant]] issued by a [[judge]] or [[magistrate]] on behalf of the state which authorizes the [[arrest]] and [[Detention (Imprisonment)|detention]] of an individual or the search and seizure of an individual's [[property]].

==Canada==
Arrest warrants are issued by a judge or [[justice of the peace]] under the [[Criminal Code (Canada)|Criminal Code]].

Once the warrant has been issued, section 29 of the code requires that the arresting officer must give notice to the accused of the existence of the warrant, the reason for it, and produce it if requested, if it is feasible to do so.

==Czech Republic== <!-- R to section {{Arrest Warrant in the Czech Republic}} links here -->
Czech courts may issue an arrest warrant when it is not possible to summon or bring in for questioning a charged person and at the same time there is a reason for detention (i.e. concern that the charged person would either flee, interfere with the proceedings or continue criminal activity, see [[Remand in the Czech Republic]]).<ref name="CNC">{{cite journal|last = Czech National Council|title = Criminal Procedural Code of the Czech Republic|journal = Collection of the Laws of the Czech Republic|volume = 141| issue = 1961| location = Prague| language = cs| url = http://portal.gov.cz/app/zakony/zakonPar.jsp?page=6&idBiblio=30139&recShow=91&nr=141~2F1961&rpp=15#parCnt| access-date = 14 July 2012| archive-date = 7 October 2017| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20171007201846/http://portal.gov.cz/app/zakony/zakonPar.jsp?page=6&idBiblio=30139&recShow=91&nr=141~2F1961&rpp=15#parCnt| url-status = dead}}</ref>{{rp|at=§69(1)}}

The arrest warrant includes:<ref name="CNC"/>{{rp|at=§69(2)}}
* identification of the [[criminal charge|charged]] person
* brief description of the act for which the person is charged
* designation of the section of the criminal code under which the person is charged
* precise description of the reasons for the issuance of the warrant

The arrest is conducted by the [[Police of the Czech Republic|police]].<ref name="CNC"/>{{rp|at=§69(3)}} Following the arrest, the police must within 24 hours either hand the arrested person over to the nearest court or release the person.<ref name="CNC"/>{{rp|at=§69(4)}}

The court must immediately interview the arrested person, who has the right to have an attorney present, unless the attorney is not within reach. The court has 24 hours from the moment of receiving the person from the police to either order [[Remand (detention)|remand]] or to release him. Reaching the maximum time is always reason for immediate release.<ref name="CNC"/>{{rp|at=§69(5)}}

==Germany==
Detaining a person is only allowed under certain conditions defined by the [[Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany]] ({{langx|de|Grundgesetz für die Bundesrepublik Deutschland}}). In article 104 (Deprivation of liberty), the fundamental law determines that
only a ''Haftrichter'' ("arrest judge") may order confinement that exceeds 48 hours. The former is called ''vorläufige Festnahme'' ("provisional confinement"), the latter is named ''Haftbefehl'' ("order of arrest"). Arrest warrants serve the enforcement of the proper expiry for instance in the [[Code of Criminal Procedure]], but also in the civil procedure law and in the administrative law and the special administrative procedures after the Tax Code, the Finance Court order or the social court law.

{{Quotation
| Article 2 (Personal freedoms)<br/>
(1) Every person shall have the right to free development of his personality insofar as he does not violate the rights of others or offend against the constitutional order or the moral law.<br/>
(2) Every person shall have the right to life and physical integrity. Freedom of the person shall be inviolable. These rights may be interfered with only pursuant to a law. | Federal Republic of Germany | Basic Law<ref>{{cite book | title=Official English Translation of the Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany | url=https://www.btg-bestellservice.de/pdf/80201000.pdf | author=Public Relations Division | orig-year=first published 23 May 1949 | date=October 2010 |editor-last1=Tomuschat |editor-first1=Christian |editor-last2=Currie |editor-first2=David P. |editor-last3=Kommers |editor-first3=Donald P. |series=Basic rights |publisher=German Bundestag |location=Bonn, Berlin | page=15 | access-date=4 September 2013}}</ref>}}

== India ==
Courts can issue arrest warrant against an individual under Section 72 of [[Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita|Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023]]. Under bailable arrest warrant a person could execute a [[bail bond]] with sufficient sureties for his attendance before the Court at a specified time and thereafter until otherwise directed by the Court, the officer to whom the warrant is directed shall take such security and shall release such person from custody. A non bailable arrest warrant is usually issued for [[Cognisable offence|serious offences]] and if there exist a suspicion that the accused will abscond. Section 74 and 75 of [[Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita|BNSS]] provide the power to the [[Chief Judicial Magistrate Court|Chief Judicial Magistrate]] or a [[Magistrate|Magistrate of the first class]] may direct a warrant to any person within his local jurisdiction for the arrest of any escaped convict, proclaimed offender or of any person who is accused of a non-bailable offence and is evading arrest. Such person shall acknowledge in writing the receipt of the warrant and shall execute it if the person for whose arrest it was issued, is in, or enters on, any land or other property under his charge. Section 78 of BNSS protects the rights of the arrested by making it compulsory for the police to present the arrested person before a magistrate within 24 hours of the arrest of the person.<ref>{{cite web | title=Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita | url=https://www.indiacode.nic.in/bitstream/123456789/20099/1/a2023-46.pdf}}</ref>

==United Kingdom==
The procedure for issuing arrest warrants differs in each of the three legal jurisdictions.

===England and Wales===
In [[England and Wales]], arrest warrants can be issued for both suspects and witnesses.

Arrest warrants for suspects can be issued by a [[justice of the peace]] under section 1 of the [[Magistrates' Courts Act 1980]] if information (in writing) is laid before them that a person has committed or is suspected of having committed an offence.<ref name="MCA 1980 S1">[http://www.statutelaw.gov.uk/content.aspx?activeTextDocId=3208602&parentActiveTextDocId=3208594 section 1 of the Magistrates' Courts Act 1980]. Statutelaw.gov.uk. Retrieved on 2011-05-29.</ref> Such arrest warrants can only be issued for someone over 18 if at least one of the following is true:<ref name="MCA 1980 S1"/>
* The offence the warrant relates to is an [[indictable offence]], or is punishable with [[imprisonment]].
* The person's address is not sufficiently established to serve a summons there.

Arrest warrants for witnesses can be issued if:
*A justice of the peace is satisfied on oath that:<ref name="MCA 1980 S97">[http://www.statutelaw.gov.uk/content.aspx?parentActiveTextDocId=3208594&ActiveTextDocId=3208748 section 97 of the Magistrates' Courts Act 1980]. Statutelaw.gov.uk. Retrieved on 2011-05-29.</ref>
**Any person in England or Wales is likely to be able to give material evidence, or produce any document or thing likely to be material evidence, at the summary trial of an information by a magistrates' court,
**It is in the interests of justice to issue a summons under this subsection to secure the attendance of that person to give evidence or produce the document or thing, and
**It is probable that a summons would not procure the attendance of the person in question.
*or if:<ref name="MCA 1980 S97"/>
**A person has failed to attend court in response to a summons,
**The court is satisfied by evidence on oath that he is likely to be able to give material evidence or produce any document or thing likely to be material evidence in the proceedings,
**It is proved on oath, or in such other manner as may be prescribed, that he has been duly served with the summons, and that a reasonable sum has been paid or tendered to him for costs and expenses, and
**It appears to the court that there is no just excuse for the failure.

===Scotland===
In Scotland, a ''warrant to apprehend'' may be issued if a defendant fails to appear in court.<ref>{{cite web|title=Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995|url=http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1995/46/section/102A?view=plain|access-date=30 January 2015}}</ref>

===Northern Ireland===
In [[Northern Ireland]] arrest warrants are usually issued by a [[magistrate]].

==United States==
{{Law enforcement in the United States}}
For the police to make a lawful arrest, the arresting officer(s) must have either [[probable cause]] to arrest, or a valid arrest warrant.

A valid arrest warrant must be issued by a neutral judge or magistrate, who has determined there is probable cause for an arrest, based upon sworn testimony or an affidavit in support of the petition for a warrant.<ref name="gard">{{cite journal|last1=Gard|first1=Stephen W.|title=Bearing False Witness: Perjured Affidavits and the Fourth Amendment|journal=Suffolk University Law Review|date=2008|volume=41|issue=3|page=452|url=http://engagedscholarship.csuohio.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1632&context=fac_articles|access-date=13 August 2017}}</ref> The arrest warrant must specifically identify the person to be arrested.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Jenkins|first1= A.|title=The American Courts: a Procedural Approach|date=2011|publisher=Jones and Bartlett Publishers|location=Sudbury, Massachusetts|isbn=978-0763755287|page=287|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yvT5SVwbakUC}}</ref> If a law enforcement affiant provides false information or shows reckless disregard for the truth when providing an affidavit or testimony in support of an arrest warrant, that may constitute grounds to invalidate the warrant.<ref name="gard"/>

These minimum requirements stem from the language contained in the [[Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Fourth Amendment]]. Federal statutes and most jurisdictions require the issuance of an arrest warrant for the arrest of individuals for most [[misdemeanor]]s that were not committed within the view of a police officer.<ref>See, e.g., {{cite web|title=Warrantless Arrests, Policy 501.4|url=http://www.flpd.org/home/showdocument?id=4157|website=Fort Lauderdale Police Department|access-date=13 August 2017|date=November 2016}}</ref> However, as long as police have the necessary probable cause, a warrant is usually not needed to arrest someone suspected of a [[felony]] in a public place; these laws vary from state to state.<ref>{{cite web|title=Virginia v. Moore, 553 U.S. 164, 128 S.Ct. 1598 (2008)|url=https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=1093900464900723958|website=Google Scholar|access-date=13 August 2017}}</ref> In a non-emergency situation, an arrest of an individual in their home requires a warrant.<ref>{{cite web|title=Search & Seizure Field Guide|url=https://www.aclu.org/files/FilesPDFs/ALPR/oregon/Washington%20County%20Sheriff%27s%20Office/30012-30050%20Search%20and%20Seizure%20Field%20Guide.pdf|website=ACLU|access-date=13 August 2017}}</ref>

===Adequate showing of probable cause===
Probable cause can be based on either direct observation by the police officer, or on hearsay information provided by others. Information the police bring to the neutral and detached magistrate must establish that—considering the police officer's experience and training—the officer knows facts, either through personal observation or through hearsay, that would suggest to a [[Reasonable person|reasonable, prudent person]] that the individual named in the warrant committed or was committing a crime.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Hearsay Evidence as a Basis for Prosecution, Arrest and Search|journal=Indiana Law Journal|date=Spring 1957|volume=32|issue=3|url=http://www.repository.law.indiana.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2796&context=ilj|access-date=13 August 2017}}</ref>

From 1964 to 1983, a constitutionally adequate affidavit comprised exclusively or primarily of hearsay information had to contain information suggesting to the examining magistrate that (1) the hearsay declarant supplying the information to the police was a credible person, and (2) that the hearsay declarant had a strong basis of knowledge for the alleged facts.<ref>[[Aguilar v. Texas|Aguilar v. Texas, 378 U.S. 108 (1964)]]</ref> Since 1983, a constitutionally sufficient affidavit must support a conclusion by a reviewing magistrate that the "[[totality of the circumstances]]" suggest that there is a fair probability that the facts the police relied on for probable cause to arrest are valid; the magistrate balances "the relative weights of all the various indicia of reliability (and unreliability) attending an informant's tip."<ref>[[Illinois v. Gates|Illinois v. Gates, 462 U.S. 213]]</ref>

===Neutral and detached magistrate===
The individual issuing the arrest warrant need not be a judge or an attorney,<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Goldstein|first1=Abraham S.|title=The Search Warrant, The Magistrate, and Judicial Review|journal=New York University Law Review|date=1987|volume=62|issue=6|page=1173|url=http://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?handle=hein.journals/nylr62&div=47&id=&page=|access-date=13 August 2017}}</ref> but must be both capable of determining whether probable cause exists as well as be a neutral and detached official.<ref>{{cite web|title=Jones v. United States, 333 US 10 (1948).|url=https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=12095002551234782978|website=Google Scholar|access-date=13 August 2017}}</ref> While arrest warrants are typically issued by courts, they may also be issued by one of the chambers of the [[United States Congress]] or other [[legislature]]s.

===No known or reckless falsehoods===
A warrant is invalid if the defendant challenging the arrest warrant can show, by a [[preponderance of the evidence]], that: 
* Specific parts of the affidavit the police submitted are false.
* The police either knowingly falsified them or made them with reckless disregard as to their truth or falsity.
* Excluding the false statements, the remainder of the affidavit would not have established probable cause to arrest.<ref>[[Franks v. Delaware|Franks v. Delaware, 438 U.S. 154 (1978)]]</ref>

===Description of arrestee===
The arrest warrant must, to comply with the Fourth Amendment, "particularly describe" the person to be seized. If the arrest warrant does not contain such a description, it is invalid—even if the affidavit submitted by the police or the warrant application contained this information.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/02-811.ZO.html|title=GROH V. RAMIREZ}}</ref>

===Mittimus===
A ''mittimus'' ({{langx |la| mittimus | translation = we send}}) is a [[writ]] issued by a court or [[magistrate]], directing the [[sheriff]] or other executive officer to convey the person named in the writ to a prison or jail, and directing the jailor to receive and imprison the person.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Miller|first1=K.W.|title=Is There a Constitutional Right to a Speedy Probable Cause Hearing? |journal=New England Journal on Crime and Civil Confinement |date=Winter 1990 |volume=16 |issue=1 |pages=121–139}}</ref>

Police [[jargon]] sometimes refers to such a writs as a [[Capias ad respondendum| "writ of capias"]], defined as orders to "take" (or "capture") a person or assets. {{linktext|Capias}} writs are often issued when a suspect fails to appear for a scheduled adjudication, hearing, or similar proceeding.

=== Bench warrant ===<!-- Other articles link here. -->
A bench warrant is a summons issued from "the bench" (a judge or court) directing the police to arrest someone who must be brought before a specific judge<ref>{{cite web|title=Glossary of Court Terms|publisher=Maryland Courts|url=http://www.courts.state.md.us/reference/glossary.html|access-date=November 23, 2016}}</ref> either for [[contempt of court]] or for failing to appear in court as required. Unlike a basic arrest warrant, a bench warrant is not issued to initiate a criminal action.<ref name=SCJD>{{cite web|title=Warrants|publisher=South Carolina Judicial Department|url=http://www.judicial.state.sc.us/summaryCourtBenchBook/HTML/CriminalC.htm|access-date=November 23, 2016}}</ref>

For example, if a defendant is released on bail or under recognizance and misses a scheduled court appearance, or if a witness whose testimony is required in court does not appear as required by a subpoena, a bench warrant may be issued for that person's arrest.<ref name="brevard">See, e.g., {{cite web|title=FAQ's|url=http://brevardclerk.us/faq-s|website=Clerk of the Court|publisher=Brevard County, Florida|access-date=13 August 2017}}</ref> In cases where a bench warrant is issued to arrest someone who posted [[bail]] and subsequently missed their court date, once they are rearrested and brought before the judge, the judge may raise the bail amount or revoke it completely.<ref name="brevard" />

If a law enforcement officer stops an individual with an outstanding bench warrant against him, the person may be detained on the warrant, and may be held in jail until bond is posted or a hearing is held on the warrant. The hearing may result in the court setting a new bail amount, new conditions, and a new court appearance date.<ref name="brevard" /> If a criminal defendant is arrested on a bench warrant, the court may determine that the person is a flight risk (likely to flee the jurisdiction) and order that person held without bail.<ref name="brevard" /><ref>{{cite web|last1=Mamalian|first1=Cynthia A.|title=State of the Science of Pretrial Risk Assessment|url=http://www.pacenterofexcellence.pitt.edu/documents/PJI_State_of_the_Science_Pretrial_Risk_Assessment_(2011).pdf|website=Pennsylvania Mental Health and Justice Center of Excellence|access-date=13 August 2017|archive-date=15 December 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171215134039/http://www.pacenterofexcellence.pitt.edu/documents/PJI_State_of_the_Science_Pretrial_Risk_Assessment_(2011).pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Outstanding arrest warrant===
An arrest warrant is an "outstanding arrest warrant" when the person named in the warrant has not yet been arrested. A warrant may be outstanding if the person named in the warrant is [[fugitive|intentionally evading law enforcement]], unaware that there is a warrant out for their arrest, the agency responsible for executing the warrant has a backlog of warrants to serve, or a combination of these factors.

Some jurisdictions have a very high number of outstanding warrants. The vast majority in American jurisdictions are for traffic related (non-violent) citations. The state of [[California]] in 1999 had around 2.5 million outstanding warrants, with nearly 1 million of them in the [[Los Angeles]] area.<ref>[http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/1999/06/22/MN09FRO.DTL&type=chart When Justice Goes Unserved / Thousands wanted on outstanding warrants – but law enforcement largely ignores them]. Sfgate.com (22 June 1999). Retrieved on 2011-05-29.</ref> The city of [[Baltimore|Baltimore, Maryland]] had 100,000 as of 2007.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/maryland/bs-xpm-2011-01-19-bs-md-prince-georges-homicides-20110119-story.html|title=Prince George's police close 4 of year's 12 homicides|author=Matt Zapotosky, ''The Washington Post''|work=[[The Baltimore Sun]]}}</ref> [[New Orleans|New Orleans, Louisiana]] had 49,000 in 1996.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20081014135720/http://www.bestofneworleans.com/dispatch/2003-12-09/cover_story2.html Countless Fugitives], Gambit Communications, Inc., 12 September 2003</ref> The state of [[Texas]] in 2009 had at least 1.7 million outstanding warrants in the Houston area alone.<ref>{{Cite web |title=1.7 million warrants out in Houston area |url=https://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/1-7-million-warrants-out-in-Houston-area-1736210.php |access-date=2022-07-30 |website=chron.com|date=9 August 2009 }}</ref>

Some jurisdictions have laws placing various restrictions on persons with outstanding warrants, such as prohibiting renewal of one's [[driver's license]]<ref>See, e.g., {{cite web |title=Texas Driver License and ID Cards Online Services Eligibility |url=https://txapps.texas.gov/tolapp/txdl/eligibility.dl |website=Texas Department of Public Safety |publisher=State of Texas |access-date=18 January 2023}}</ref> or obtaining a [[passport]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Ehrlich |first1=Thomas |title=Passports |journal=Stanford Law Review |date=1966 |volume=19 |issue=1 |pages=129–149 |doi=10.2307/1227050 |jstor=1227050 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Kassem |first1=Ramzi |title=Passport Revocation as Proxy Denaturalization: Examining the Yemen Cases |journal=Fordham Law Review |date=2013 |volume=82 |page=2099}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[Arrest without warrant]]
*[[European Arrest Warrant]]
*[[Interpol#Methodology|Interpol methodology]]
*[[Search warrant]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}
*''[[Criminal Justice: A Brief Introduction]]'' by [[Frank Schmalleger]] (2002)
{{Criminal procedure}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Arrest Warrant}}
[[Category:Criminal law]]
[[Category:Warrants]]
[[Category:Law enforcement terminology]]
[[Category:Arrests]]