How to Get a Bench Warrant Dropped
- 1). Contact your attorney. Once a bench warrant is issued after a failure to appear before court, the only way to have the warrant lifted is to go before the judge. If you have an attorney, you may be able to get the warrant lifted by explaining the circumstances around your failure to appear to the judge and having the attorney appear on your behalf.
- 2). Turn yourself in to law enforcement. A bench warrant allows any law enforcement officer in the jurisdiction to arrest you and bring you before the tribunal. To get the warrant lifted on your own, you will have to appear before the judge yourself. Turning yourself in is one way to get yourself in front of the judge sooner rather than later.
- 3). Appear before the court. The judge or magistrate issuing the bench warrant maintains jurisdiction over your case for as long as the warrant is in effect. Whether your attorney gets the bench warrant lifted, or you are otherwise able to appear before the court, you must be able to explain yourself. A court can impose criminal penalties for a failure to appear, including fines and incarceration. If you have a good reason why you were unable to appear in court, explain this to the judge at the hearing. If the court accepts your reasons, it will reschedule your court date at another time. If not, you may be taken into custody or levied a fine.
Source...