Tuesday, January 10, 2012

Why You Shouldn’t Pay Old Tickets Simply to Avoid a Warrant—and What You Should Do Instead

If you’ve neglected to pay one or more Houston traffic citations, you may find yourself in the position of having a Harris county arrest warrant in your name. Whether you simply forgot about the ticket or deliberately neglected to take care of it because you didn’t feel you deserved the citation, the reality is that old tickets don’t simply go away because you forget about them. Eventually you will get caught, whether it is through a routine traffic stop, or during Houston’s annual warrant roundup.

While your first instinct may be to pay the tickets immediately to avoid the possibility of being arrested in your home or at work—or anywhere for that matter—there may be a better way to handle the situation. If you are aware that a Houston arrest warrant has been issued for you, the smart thing to do is get it fixed while you still have at least a bit of leverage as well as more than one option to make the problem go away.

Options Other Than Paying Your Old Tickets
No matter which direction you choose to go regarding your past due traffic tickets and warrant for failure to appear, it is highly advised that you consult an experienced attorney in the area before you make your final decision. There may be many factors you are unaware of or had not considered that your attorney will be cognizant of, giving you a much better chance of a positive outcome.

1. If you are aware there is a Houston arrest warrant with your name on it, hire an attorney immediately and discuss whether there is a possibility of the attorney having the warrant quashed, which means it is effectively cancelled and you no longer have to worry about being arrested. If this option is a possibility it can save you not only the humiliation of an arrest but the expense of additional fines as well as the possibility of a blot on your record. If your attorney is able to have the warrant quashed, then the court will set a new court date which you absolutely must show up for.

2. You can post a Harris county bond, either in person, through your attorney or through a bondsman. If you go in person to post a bond in Houston you run the risk of being arrested right then and there, although it is not especially likely. The goal of the city is to collect the money for outstanding traffic citations therefore there is probably little interest in jailing you when you are making the effort to pay your fines.

3. Your attorney may be able to have the outstanding tickets dismissed altogether depending on the amount of time which has passed. If a significant period of time has elapsed, it is possible that the officer who gave you the citation is no longer employed with the city of Houston, or that any witnesses named in the case have been lost track of. It is definitely in your best interests to explore other options than paying the ticket to avoid the points on your driving record, the increase in insurance rates and the possibility of having your present or potential employment affected by the pleading guilty to an offense—which happens the moment you pay the ticket.

Ignoring or forgetting about traffic citations should be avoided at all costs, so treat traffic tickets with the seriousness they deserve and seek out legal help in the even a Harris county arrest warrant has been issued against you.

Author: Sullo & Sullo Attorneys

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