How to Find Pima County Warrants

Different kinds of warrants are issued for different offenses. While a search warrant is required by the law enforcement authorities to search a particular location for a short period of time, it will not suffice for detention of the suspected individual. An arrest warrant, on the other hand, empowers the police to detain the suspect as well as search both his person and his premises. The police can search additional areas if the offender in question flees into another residence or any other building in the vicinity.

Pima County warrants are similar to the county warrants of other states and can remain in effect for years altogether. A county warrant is mandatory for arresting an offender suspected of a misdemeanor especially when the crime was not witnessed by the police. A need for a county warrant can be waived when the offender is suspected to be guilty of a felony. 

Issuance of Warrants:

The police can request a warrant from the court by submitting a proper affidavit. The affidavit must contain the reason for suspecting an individual. The warrant can be issued only by the court and notifies the suspected individual to appear before the court on a stipulated date and time. A bench warrant is normally issued by the court if the individual fails to make an appearance in court.

Information Contained in Warrants

The warrants of Pima County usually contain the physical details of the offender as well as the nature of offense. The name and date of birth are the initial prerequisites for a county warrant. Physical identifiers like scars, injury marks or tattoos are included in a warrant as well. Apart from these details, the height, race and sex are mentioned within the warrant as a matter of routine. The last known address as well as the nature of the crime is prominently depicted within the warrant. The bond amount needs to be included within the Pima County warrant as well.

Types of Warrants

The Sheriff’s Office of Pima County is located at 1750 East Benson Highway, Tucson, AZ 85714.  You can get the details of various kinds of warrants from their official website at http://www.pimasheriff.org/. Criminal and fugitive warrants are held by the Sheriff’s Office and terminal operations usually confirm such a warrant. All arrest warrants are considered to be valid as well as extraditable after it is duly confirmed by the entering agency. In the case of felony warrants, the deputy is permitted to arrest the offender fleeing from law, only after confirmation. The fugitive is usually imprisoned in the Pima County Jail after he has been informed of his rights.

The detaining officer, on the other hand, cannot arrest an offender if the agency holding the warrant declines to extradite the offender. However, the detaining officer is perfectly within the law if he refuses to arrest an offender for unusual violations like fishing without a license for instance.  The same right can be exercised if the offender has a FTA (Failure To Appear) warrant for a criminal traffic violation other than a DUI.

Any peace officer of Pima County is empowered to arrest an individual served with a civil warrant. The civil arrest warrants are required to be served within the daytime strictly between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 4 p.m. only.

Obtaining Records

The Record’s Maintenance Unit division of the Sheriff’s Office of Pima County manages and maintains all the public enforcement records of the county. However, you need to submit a request for accessing the records. The request should contain your name, address as well as your contact number. The case number or date along with the location of the incident is required to be submitted as well. Certain records may be restricted, especially if the information contained within it can hinder an ongoing investigation. Request for release of records may also be turned down if it is considered to be unsafe for the individual concerned.

Civil warrants, child support warrants as well as bench warrants are issued by the Superior Court of Pima County. A Superior Court records search can also be conducted online by accessing http://www.agave.cosc.pima.gov/PublicDocs/ . You can call up the Legal Records Department at (520) 740-3240 or visit the department (110 W Congress, Tucson, Arizona 85701-1317) in person if you fail to find the required record online. The office of the court is open Monday through Friday during regular business hours.