Types of Warrant and Arrest Records

If given a moment, perhaps you could come up with several reasons why you would want to search arrest and warrant records. Perhaps you have small children and you are looking to hire a live-in nanny to care for them while you work. Perhaps you own a small business and are looking to add to your workforce. Arrest and warrant records will quickly identify for you the types of people that will be associating with your children or as a part of your organization. If a record reveals that someone has an outstanding warrant, it could speak volumes about their trustworthiness.

There are typically two forms of warrants that can be leveled against an individual, namely arrest warrants and bench warrants. Each of these has its own specific characteristics and each one is commonly used by the law. With that said, be aware that each municipality or jurisdiction has its unique terminology for certain kinds of warrants. For example, some jurisdictions have felony warrants, civil warrants and alias warrants. All of these will be discussed in more detail below. The most important thing to remember, however, is that should you become aware that a warrant has been issued against you, it is important to act upon it quickly. Failure to do so can result in loss of freedom, money and reputation.

Arrest Warrants

Arrest warrants are applied for by police or law enforcement agencies, issued by a court and signed by a Judge, which allows law enforcement agencies to physically detain a person.  These are usually done in instances where a crime has been convicted and it is established that there is enough evidence to hold a person to answer for those crimes. This particular type of warrant tends to be acted upon quickly because there is a vested interest in associating it with a particular crime and as a follow-up for the investigation they have been pursuing.

Bench Warrant

Another type of warrant can be issued if a person is required to attend a scheduled court appearance and fails to do so; if there are outstanding fines or if community service has not been completed as ordered. An example of issuance of a bench warrant would be if you have a hearing for a violation of probation and you fail to appear for the hearing, the judge can order an arrest warrant be issued against you and direct the law enforcement agency to immediately act upon it.

Arrest Warrant Records

Arrest warrant records can be located in a number of ways and are usually free and open to the public. Searching on-line databases that are open to the public usually requires a subscription. Going to the local courthouse and doing an in-house database search may pull up arrest records as well. Also, local police agencies can provide arrest record information; however, they may not be willing to so without some permissible use. 

Searching on-line databases or soliciting the help of someone to do it for you will quickly help you ascertain the types of people that may be working with you or for you. A simple cost-free or low cost search may prove to be invaluable.