Misdemeanor warrants are issued on Tuesday & Thursday from 8:00 a.m. -11:30 a.m. An Incident/Offense report MUST be filed with the Sheriff’s Office or Police Dept., prior to applying for a warrant. You MUST bring a copy of the report with you when applying for a warrant. The report will be returned to you after the warrant screening process is complete & you MUST bring the report to court with you.
If a warrant is issued by the Clerk’s Office, it will be sent to the Sheriff’s Office to be served. The Clerk’s office does not control how long the service process takes.
The case will be put on a First Appearance Docket after the Defendant (person committing the crime) is arrested. ONLY THE DEFENDANT is required to appear on this court date. They will enter a plea of guilty or not guilty on this date. The case will be set for trial if they enter a plea of not guilty. You will receive a subpoena from the Clerk’s Office for the scheduled trial date and you MUST appear on the trial date.
Any supporting documents or records (medicals, estimates, etc.) must be filed with the Clerk’s Office before the Defendant’s first court appearance. Bring copies to the Clerk’s Office and they will be scanned into the court case file. (The Clerk’s office cannot scan or store photos, CDs or audio/video tapes.) Keep the original documents for your own file. Bring these to court with you on the date of the scheduled trial.
A Restitution Affidavit form must be completed and filed with the Clerk’s Office before the Defendant’s first court appearance. (Restitution is money owed to you as a result of this crime.) The court cannot consider repayment to you if an affidavit has not been filed.
It is YOUR responsibility to keep the Clerk’s Office informed of any changes in your contact information (address, phone #etc.). Subpoenas are mailed out based on the information YOU provided when the warrant was issued.
ON THE SCHEDULED TRIAL DATE: THE COURT MAY DISMISS YOUR CASE IF YOU FAIL TO PROVIDE DOCUMENTS AND/OR EVIDENCE TO SUPPORT YOUR COMPLAINT.
IF YOU FAIL TO SHOW UP ON TRIAL DATE: THE COURT MAY DISMISS YOUR CASE!