Warrants in the time of COVID

Kimberly2 1Author:

Kimberly J. Benjamin, Founder & Managing Attorney

You missed Court in March.

The trumped-up charges from a year ago was found on the assistant prosecutor’s desk as he cleaned up to go home for a month or two and now you are facing a criminal charge.

You just found out there is a warrant with your name on it and your aunt in Hackensack, New Jersey needs you desperately to watch her schitzu, while she’s in the hospital with COVID 19.

Do not despair.

Even in the time of COVID, the Missouri DWI & Criminal Law Center at the Benjamin Law Firm has the experience and connections to get things done. The experience and connections to keep you and your loved ones out of jail with reduced bonds or warrants set aside in many, many cases.

Today I sat in on a town hall with the Jackson County Presiding Judge David Byrne and the message was clear, “We are open for business, but…

The local courts are mostly following the Supreme Court order banning most in-person hearings.

So, in-person court appearances are not really happening much, but the court is still doing business. And trick is, to figure out who in the Court you need to talk to in order to get something done.

You might think any lawyer knows this information to help you, but that is not reality.  We know just who to go to in order to get things done in court houses all over the KC Metro area.

It’s the first step in our zealous representation.

Our goal is to first get you an “OR” bond, so you don’t have to spend a day in jail.  An OR bond means you can be released on your “Own Recognizance” and often have you sign your own bond to guarantee you will live up to the bond conditions that are set by the judge. Bond conditions are things you must do, or avoid doing, to remain free on bond pending trial.

If the judge will not grant an OR bond, we will ask the Court to grant you a 10% cash bond so that any money you post can be available to take care of court costs or fines, if needed.  If the cash is not needed for that, then it will be returned to you after the case is finished.

The third, and least desirable option, is a cash or secured bond. A cash bond means that you will have to put all the money up with the Court.  If it is a secured bond, you have to hire a bondsman.   Bondsmen are the security for the Court because they promise to pay the full amount of your bond if you do not appear, or go arrest you and bring you to the jail. They, however, will charge you around 10 percent or more in some cases to get you out and they keep the money no matter what happens with your case.

Jail in the time of COVID does not seem like a quality shelter-in-place plan. So, don’t worry if you’ve got a warrant and want to make sure you don’t get a knock on the door during your month-long stay in your home being a good citizen keeping your social distance.

Don’t worry, visit https://dwicriminallawcenter.com/ and start solving your legal problem today.

 

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