Failure to appear in court occurs when a person who has been ordered to appear in a court of law at a specified time and day does not show up. A person may fail to appear to answer to a traffic violation, in response to a subpoena, or for a trial of their felony criminal charges.
Whatever the purpose of the scheduled court appearance may be, a person who receives a legal notice to appear in court must appear or make arrangements with the court to reschedule the appearance. If they do not show up and do not reschedule, they can be guilty of failure to appear. In some cases, it can be charged as a criminal offense.
In New York, if a defendant fails to appear for a court appearance in their criminal case, the court can issue a bench warrant for their arrest. The defendant can also be charged with a new criminal charge for the offense of bail jumping or failure to respond to an appearance ticket.
What Is a Bench Warrant for Failure to Appear?
A bench warrant is simply a warrant that directs the police to arrest a person and bring them to court. When the police arrest someone for failure to appear, the person is usually taken to jail and detained until a judge is available to hold a hearing on the matter.
Where and When Do I Appear in Court in New York?
An individual should have a written document that states the time and day of their ordered appearance in court. It should also tell them the location of the court in which they have been ordered to appear.
They should obey the instructions on the document regarding the time and place of their appearance. If a person knows the court in which they should appear, they can always contact the office of the clerk of the court to get the information they need to make their appearance as ordered. Or, if an individual does not know what is required of them, they need to contact a New York lawyer for guidance.
In New York, What Happens if You Don’t Show Up in Court?
The exact consequences of failing to appear as ordered in a New York court depends in part on the type of hearing an individual was ordered to attend and the legal matter that is at issue in the hearing.
If a person has been charged with a traffic violation and fails to appear in traffic court as directed in the summons they received, their driver’s license may be suspended. Their vehicle registration might also be suspended, but that depends on the traffic violation with which they are charged.
Suspension of a person’s driver’s license and vehicle registration may also follow, if an individual does not appear at a traffic hearing, pending their appearance at a subsequent hearing. An individual’s car insurance rates can be affected if their vehicle registration is suspended for even 1 day.
At some point in a case, if a person fails to appear at a hearing in traffic court for a traffic violation, they may be found guilty of the traffic violation charged by default. Then the person would get points on their record and have to pay the fine related to their violation.
In the case of a traffic violation, a person would receive notice by mail if they miss their hearing. They would receive this notice before experiencing any consequences. The notice would tell them the following:
- The traffic violation with which they have been charged
- The fact that an order and fine may be entered in the court record
- That the court order may be entered as a final judgment with the County Clerk in the county in which the person’s car is registered
- That the person can avoid the imposition of a fine and the entry of judgment by either entering a plea or making an appearance at a hearing within 30 days of the notice by mail.
This notice would be sent to the address on file with the New York Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), so a person should always have their current mailing address on their record with the DMV. If they do not, they might miss the notice.
When a person fails to appear at a hearing in a criminal case to answer for a criminal charge, the court is likely to issue a bench warrant. This is an order for the person to be arrested by law enforcement. It is entered into law enforcement’s criminal data base. This means that in the course of any future interaction with law enforcement, e.g. if the person is stopped for any speeding or moving violations, they would be arrested immediately.
In addition, if the person had posted bail to get out of jail when they were first arrested and charged with a crime, they would forfeit the bail they posted. Any money paid in connection with getting bail would have to be surrendered. If the person had purchased a bail bond from a bail bondsman, they would then be liable to the bond company for the full amount of the bail bond.
New York gives an individual who has failed to appear a 30-day grace period after their missed court date. The court does not issue a bench warrant until 30 days have passed. Thus, the individual has 30 days to arrange to appear in court and make their appearance. They can avoid legal problems by appearing within the 30-day grace period.
A person who does not know what to do if they have missed their court date should seek a New York lawyer consultation. Their lawyer would be able to assist them in contacting the proper court authority and arranging to appear in court within the 30-day grace period.
Are There Defenses for Failure To Appear in New York?
Even if the 30-day grace period has passed, a person can still claim defenses to a charge of failing to appear in a criminal case. They may show that their failure was due to circumstances beyond their control. They may have been in an accident, were delayed in an out-of-town location, or were hospitalized because of an illness or accident.
It is important to remember that a failure to appear in a criminal case is a separate criminal offense, so it is something that a person needs to take seriously. They should consult a New York lawyer for advice regarding the steps to take and how to defend against the consequences.
The same is essentially true in a civil case as well. Ultimately, if the failure is especially egregious, a person can be found in contempt of court and ordered to pay a fine or even to serve time in jail.
A person can claim that their failure was due to circumstances beyond their control and that the other party in the civil case was not harmed. The approach that an individual should not take is to ignore the situation and not get the help of a lawyer in addressing it.
What Happens if You Don’t Show Up in Civil Court in New York?
If a person does not respond to a summons for jury duty, the court may hold the person in contempt of court and issue a bench warrant. However, first, when an individual misses a jury duty appearance in New York, the court usually sends them a “failure to appear” summons. A person who receives such a summons should respond to it promptly.
They want to contact the court authority with whom they should communicate. They should be able to make arrangements for a new date for the person to appear. Again, a person must deal with the situation and should not ignore it. The obligation to appear for jury duty will not just go away.
In some civil cases, a court might prosecute the person who fails to appear when ordered for contempt of court. Civil contempt occurs when an individual fails to comply with a court order in a way that harms another party’s rights.
However, to be found in contempt of court, it must be shown that a person knew about the order to appear in court and could have complied with it. For example, if the case is a family law case that involves financial obligations such as the duty to pay child support or alimony, it would have to be shown that the failure to appear hurt the financial status of the other party.
For civil contempt, enforcement may take the form of paying fines, seizure of assets of the person who did not appear or, in some extreme cases, imprisonment until the person complies.
Imprisonment might be made conditional on the person taking an action that is ordered by the court, e.g., paying unpaid child support. The person is released from jail when they comply with the court order. Or a court may order a person to pay escalating daily fines until they comply.
Do I Need a New York Lawyer for Failure To Appear in Court Issues?
If you have failed to appear in court as directed in a summons or an order, you want to talk to a New York criminal defense lawyer as soon as possible. It can be advantageous to take action within 30 days after the failure.
And even if more time has passed, it is still advantageous not to ignore the situation. Rather you want to review the facts of your situation with your lawyer. Your lawyer can guide you through the proper procedure for dealing with the failure, avoiding the negative consequences and getting back on track with your required court appearances.
