Arrested: Part 1

[Dark Skies]

I can see how you could forget a court date if there was other stuff going on. Mind you, having said that, a court date figures large in most people's heads if they've had little or no dealings with the law.

In the UK you would be arrested for failure to attend - it's seen as contempt of court.

Mind you, in the UK most things are arrestable offences - even trivial stuff like dropping litter. Comrad Tony Blair despised freedom and civil liberties for the British people and during his term in office no form of socialist state bullying was too small for him.

 

[pbearperry]

Every police Dept. has different ways to handle minor charge warrants.When I was with the warrant squad,during the weekend I would go through the recent warrants that came to us daily,and there were a lot of them.If it was a
minor charge,I would mail out a form letter to the person to go to District court asap and clear it up.I was told by the court personnel that a lot of folks were actually going there on their own and the warrants would be recalled.A few weeks later,I would recheck and then go after the ones that would not show up.I am sure that our District Court here is no different from most.People would be surprised at the no show rate of all defendants.It is really high.The bottom line is,if you screw up and get charged with something,show up for court.If you don't,don't blame anyone else but yourself.

 

[Guns and more]

You chose not to appear for your court date, why shouldn't you be arrested?

When you realize that your state is full of illegal aliens in plain sight, who can't seem to be found by the authorities, this statement seems ridiculous.
When you give the government too much power, they go crazy.
I'm not excusing your bad behavior, but what happened to common sense? The legal system (if they really are short on money), has better things to do with their resources.

 

[Double Naught Spy]

I don't agree with showing up at my home and arresting me within hours of missing traffic court since there was a bench warrant issued. I think they jumped the gun showing up to arrest me that soon, but had I gone in to the court the next morning I would've been arrested anyway just like the other two people. However this isn't up to the deputies, this is policy, albeit a very bad one since they wasted so much manpower for nothing.

Let's see, you have a history of missing court dates and you feel wronged because the deputies were prompt when you were not?

If you would have done your job,then they would not have had to do their job.

If something like a court date doesn't rank high enough on your list of important things to handle (like going to buy guns was certainly not something you forgot), then you brought on the hassles yourself. Boo hoo.

 

[Duke of Doubt]

Couple of observations.

Although in common parlance some crimes sometimes are called "traffic offenses", at least in Maine (though perhaps not in Colorado) "Operating an Unregistered Motor Vehicle" is in fact a "criminal offense" and not a "traffic infraction" or "civil infraction" if the vehicle is unregistered or if the registration expired more than 150 days beforehand. A warning may issue if the expiration was fewer than 30 days beforehand. Even if for less than 150 days, as "traffic infractions" go, "Operating Unregistered" is a pretty serious offense, at least in Maine. I say this only because the prevailing attitude of this thread would suggest that the offense here is "minor" or "traffic" and thus unworthy of serious prosecutorial attention. The insurance matter would be treated here as it was there -- show up at the Violations Bureau with proof of THEN current insurance, and the charge of Failure to Display Evidence of Insurance would be dismissed. But Operating Unregistered is a crime here, and even as a traffic infraction (<150 days) is taken quite seriously.

Missing court here results in a bench warrant barring extraordinary circumstances communicated prior to the time of the hearing -- and often even then. However, the ordinary way this is resolved by an ordinary citizen is to call the court, be told to surrender at the courthouse and to get a new court date after appearing before a judge, signing a bond sheet and posting bail -- after being taken into custody by the court marshall though not "arrested" or booked by PD. However, one can be picked up on a bench warrant by local or other PD anywhere from hours to years after missing court. When one appears again in court, he will face the additional criminal charge of Failing to Appear on a Criminal Summons, though this often is dismissed by the DA if the defendant pleas to the underlying offense.

How soon a bench warrant executes via arrest here depends on a number of things, but I'd be surprised if the failed multiple firearms purchase on the same day you missed court wasn't behind it. Similarly with the enhanced attention to all matters firearm in connection with your arrest.

 

[CoRoMo]

Have you since passed the NICS check and gotten those two .22 youth rifles for you sons' birthdays?

 

[eye5600]

When I was in college (in Maine), a fraternity brother took a phone call from his father after which he announced "There's a warrant out for my arrest in DC." It was a parking ticket matter. His family lived in DC, I think.

 

[SaxonPig]

Do not, under any circumstance, for any reason, EVER miss a court date.

Period. No excuses.

No matter how minor the original charge, once you fail to appear and that bench warrant is issued, you are subject to arrest. Failure to appear becomes a whole new charge beyond the original purpose for the court date and judges get really, REALLY pissed about not showing up.

"I forgot." This was your excuse? You are lucky you didn't get 10 days in jail on a contempt charge for missing the date.

 

[runrabbitrun]

Funny how certain 'systems' will arrest a guy for failure to appear over a traffic ticket.
Yet many systems (from my experience)
wont go to the job or home and arrest a dead beat mom/dad for
NOT showing up to court over child support issues.

This particular system is broken and the priorities are all out of whack. IMO

 

[Grey_Mana]

I was ticked for a out-of-date inspection in New York. I had an excuse (mechanic waiting for parts), cop says "tell it to the judge." I get it fixed, get it inspected. I go to the courthouse on the right date, it is closed. December 24. Closed until January 3. I tried calling; got the machine. Show up Jan 3, pay the fine plus another big fine for failing to appear. Ask for a public defender - nope, that's only for the initial trial. Get a lawyer if you want to appeal. I never did fine anybody willing to admit that the system was wrong, or what they expected me to have done.

But compared to the OP, I got off lucky.
----------------------------------------------

Separately, I was ticketed for reckless driving in Manassas VA (doing 85 when the rest of the traffic was doing 80; 80 being the cut off for reckless). Since it is reckless, must appear. I show up on time, wait in line, watch other people get their charges reduced so they can keep their license. I get my turn before the judge, beg for the same leniency, he names a fine and no points since I'm out of state (so no chance of losing my license due to points). Go to pay. There is no line but tons of people waiting; you have to wait until they call your name. I wait all day. Lots of other people coming in and getting processed; clerks refuse to talk to us - "wait your turn." At 5 pm, 9 of us stop the clerk as he's trying to leave, demand help. He checks, and says the paperwork never came from the courtroom for any of us. I finally get to pay my fine plus an additional $30 fine for not appearing. "You can appeal it, but you have to pay the fine first. And don't appeal it, because the appeals judge will slap a huge fine on you if you show up without a lawyer. Most people from out of state know just to mail in the fine plus the failure-to-appear fine."

I was outraged - no one got any type of receipt in that court room; no justice and no way to get it. And I certainly would have just mailed in the money and not taken a day off work, except that the ticket said "must appear."

But compared to the OP, I got off lucky.

 

[Leaky Waders]

I've read all the replies and the wall of text op...

And I think - you're the problem.

You have an excuse for everything...how about being responsible for your actions - just a little?

You don't keep up with your car registration? WTH? Isn't there a sticker on your license plate or does it expire in your birth month or something? Doesn't the DMV send you a reminder? If you are responsible enough to drive, then you should be responsible enough to keep the basic paperwork needed for that vehicle.

You missed a court date? So you were too sick and ill feeling to go to court, but you could go to the store to buy .22's or hot dogs or cigarrettes or whatever? Many people are too sick to go to work too, the end up at the freaking matinee movie in the mall while some co-worker has to cover for their 'sick day.'

You have firearms lying about your house...you're wearing one, you're arrested..and then you are offended that one officer asks another what should be done with the firearms?

I'm freaking astounded!

Now, I believe in the consitution, the RTBA and all...but you are being arrested, basically due to a chain of irresponsibilty on your part that could've been fixed very easily at any point. And, was still handled and fixed in your favor in a very common sense manner despite you.

I don't see any issue with anything done.

I'm sorry for being so to the point...but grow up already. You are your own victim.

Learn from this and move on.

R,

LW

 

[Rockwell1]

You were the only one apparently where someone was actually sent out to arrest you. It looks like other people were arrested as they came in to the ADA office.

Actually we don't know that he was the only one, we know that some people were arrested when they came in (standard practice in El Paso County) but we don't know that everyone but him came in.

 

[rainbowbob]

Once again, we're speaking about traffic violators here.

IMO - the OP is being too hard on himself...

His admitted bad behavior is merely a licensing fee violation. He was not speeding or otherwise driving recklessly. His actions (or lack of action) did not put the public at risk by any stretch of the imagination.

Using LEOs to enforce missed payments and court appointments is a ridiculous waste of resources. Making full payment of fines and fees a requirement for re-licensing would undoubtedly get the job done more efficiently.

I think we can all agree that with the limited resources ALL LE departments are facing - the public wants to know that enforcement policies are prioritized to protect citizens from predatory criminals.

 

[Atticum]

Arresting people trying to reschedule court dates...

Sure, its the law. But is law without mercy just?

To those who say that the OP is the problem, I assume you would agree with the practice of your local executive branch spending your tax dollars exercising traffic warrants for people who are a day late for their court dates. I would certainly question your priorities about the allocation of governmental resources.

To those who still think the OP is the problem, but do not agree with this allocation of resources, it might be time for a refresher course in active citizenship. So long as they do not violate the Constituion of the United States, the people create their own laws as well as dictate how they are enforced, often through their choice of who they elect to hold public office. If you don't agree with a law or the jurisprudence with which it is being exercised, then you might see how the OP is not the problem but the solution.

Ideally, when this new story hits there will be other active citizens who will contact the District Attorney and see to it that this ADA checks herself or is removed.

The law exists for a reason- justice. But justice without mercy is not justice at all.

 

[runrabbitrun]

Using LEOs to enforce missed payments and court appointments is a ridiculous waste of resources.

I 'think' that's the main point.

Funny how some side with the notion
that 'traffic citations' are some serious offense.

 

[Stirling XD]

I can't lend the OP too much sympathy. He screwed up and bad things happened to him. I look at being uninsured as a serious offence (hardly a felony) that costs all of us a lot of money. (Yes, I know he actually had it but couldn't find the card.) And of all the people on the planet you should avoid offending, a judge is pretty high on the list. But I find it troubling that so much LE resources are being utilized to track down people that simply missed a court date. It seems extreme to arrest someone that missed a court date and came in the next day to take care of it. Why not fine them $100 for missing and reschedule. That way the court makes money and the jail doesn't have to waste time processing them (thus saving money).

I live a couple hours north of the OP. The sheriff here has had to make cuts at the county jail and on the streets (meanwhile social programs are flourishing). They have to turn loose all but the most serious offenders. We've all heard stories of bad things happening to people because police resources were tied up elsewhere. That's the exact reason that we arm ourselves and take responsibility for our own safety. But I would hate to think that police might not respond to a robbery in progress becasue they were busy hunting down someone that failed to show up in court for a traffic ticket. I hope they are not arresting these people so that they can simply say at the end of the year, "Look how many arrests we made!"

Like I said in the beginning, the OP should have been more responsible and taken care of business. But it irritates me to see govenment agencies funded by our tax dollars wasting time and resourse on minor offences.

 

[Duke of Doubt]

rainbowbob: "His admitted bad behavior is merely a licensing fee violation."

I don't know what a "licensing fee violation" is, but Colorado law appears (I am not admitted to practice in Colorado) to make his violation a misdemeanor crime punishable by up to six months in jail: (Colorado Title 42, Part 6, Sections 139, 142). http://www.michie.com/colorado/lpext.dll?f=templates&fn=main-h.htm&cp=

Maine, where I am admitted, treats Operating an Unregistered Motor Vehicle as a misdemeanor Class E crime (see my post above) punishable by up to six months in jail. That's aside from sentencing on the Failure to Appear charge.

The prevailing view in this thread seems to be that these violations are minor and undeserving of official attention or enforcement. That may or may not be preferable as a normative thing, but is not descriptive of legal realities as I have experienced them.

 

[JohnBT]

"But justice without mercy is not justice at all."

But he got mercy, quite a bit of it, AFTER they got him downtown. If he'd gone on his own there wouldn't have been a problem, would there? But he didn't bother to go.

Why do so many folks want to make court attendance voluntary?

John

 

[Blackbeard]

I have to agree with the policy. You miss your court date -- you get arrested. Period. The alternative is that instead of a ticket they arrest you for speeding and hold you in jail until your court date.

Don't miss your court date. It's not like missing a doctor's appointment.

 

[slogfilet]

The OP has accepted the fact that he was in the wrong for the initial offenses and missing the court date.

According to the letter of the law, it seems the arrest was justified. While this may seem like an irresponsible use of resources, one example does not necessarily indicate a pattern.

Someone earlier in this thread mentioned that there must be equality in administration of justice, which I do think is important.

Say there are 1,000 folks out there with bench warrants for minor offenses. No matter how minor, I believe it would be irresponsible to ignore them all. On the other hand, sending teams of deputies out to round up all 1,000 of them (and thus ignoring more serious offenders) would be absurd.

So if the cops arrest 1 out of the 1,000... a point is made, justice is served, the other 999 folks with bench warrants for spitting on the sidewalk walk free... but the 1 guy who got arrested is going to be PISSED. If not pissed, then concerned that such resources are being wasted, feeling singled out, etc.

My point is, without the context of the bigger picture, it is difficult to determine what is really going on. If the OP was made an "example," then fair enough. Sorry that you had to take one for the team, but...

Not sure if this sheds any new perspective on the situation, btu that's my take.


(Hey, here's an example of what I'm talking about... Some people think it's weird that the streetlights always seem to go out right when they're driving past them. Weird, huh? It was exactly as I was driving by, and poof, the light went out. Well, it's not as weird when you consider the 250,000 street lights that didn't go out as you drove past... ok, back to work.)

 

[warnerwh]

There's a good reason why judges treat different people according to their histories. One person will get off with little to nothing and another will get a huge fine for the same offense. It's not black and white every time.
I think the police are spending too much time with nothing else to do. A letter to a person with no record is much cheaper for the city. People like the OP aren't likely to flee over a registration issue. Unless they've changed it letters are what people get in Portland, OR. The way the government wastes man power and money I guess this shouldn't surprise me.
In these parts you can get robbed and many people don't even bother reporting it due to the waste of time for everyone. Due to the amazing amount of crime in the entire country the cops should be working on busting the bad guys, there's more of them than people with traffic infractions. Then again that would be work and there's plenty of people everywhere that will take the easy job leaving more difficult work to others.

 

[ojibweindian]

Arrested, at his house, over a minor traffic violation and a subsequent failure to appear in court for the violation. What utter crap.

Aren't there bigger fish to catch like, say, serial rapists and murderers?

 

[Duke of Doubt]

ojbweinden: "Arrested, at his house, over a minor traffic violation and a subsequent failure to appear in court for the violation. What utter crap."

Again, Operating an Unregistered Motor Vehicle is neither minor nor a traffic violation. It's a misdemeanor crime, much like Operating Under the Influence.

"Aren't there bigger fish to catch like, say, serial rapists and murderers?"

In the immortal words of Jimmy Malone, "Yeah. But I'm not doing them right now."

 

[Sergeant Sabre]

I don't know what a "licensing fee violation" is, but Colorado law appears (I am not admitted to practice in Colorado) to make his violation a misdemeanor crime punishable by up to six months in jail: (Colorado Title 42, Part 6, Sections 139, 142). http://www.michie.com/colorado/lpext...main-h.htm&cp=

Maine, where I am admitted, treats Operating an Unregistered Motor Vehicle as a misdemeanor Class E crime (see my post above) punishable by up to six months in jail. That's aside from sentencing on the Failure to Appear charge.

Six month max for a registration violation? Wow. What's a drunk driving offense for you in Maine? Here a first offense is only a 93-day max.

Aren't there bigger fish to catch like, say serial rapists and murderers?

I knew somebody would eventually throw out this tired old cliche'. Rest assured, we have some top people on that. The rest of us primarily worry about jay-walking, citizen harassment, and donuts. *sigh* Everybody knows how to be a cop, it seems, and they're not afraid to tell the cops about it. Why don't people seek out accountants, electricians, plumbers, or truck drivers and tell them how to do their job? That's rhetorical, so don't answer it.

In the immortal words of Jimmy Malone, "Yeah. But I'm not doing them right now."

Oh my goodness I was thinking the same thing as a defense attorney at exactly the same time! Excuse me, I have to go shower and scrub off a few layers of skin. Still, I'll not feel clean...

 

[runrabbitrun]

I can see it now.

SWAT is called out to get those 'bad guys'. LMAO

It's a miss appropriation of dollars/resources as far as I'm concerned.

I do like the idea of:
'If you miss your court date and didn't reschedule BEFORE said date,
you get another fine'.
But to waste tax dollars arresting someone over petty BS... is just that, petty BS.

Maybe it's a money maker for the cops or judicial side?
I just don't see how though.