Well, it’s nearly that time again—time for the annual Texas Warrant Roundup, now in its eighth year. While no official date has yet been set for the 2014 Warrant Roundup, the enforcement phase generally begins during the first or second week of March. Prior to that, a “grace” or “amnesty” period will exist during which the City of Houston hopes the thousands of people with their name on the warrant list will rush down and pay all their fines and fees. During the grace period, notifications will be attempted, although it’s best not to count on being notified. During some months the City of Houston has as many as 300,000 outstanding warrants for those who neglected to take care of a traffic citation or other penal code violation. Our Houston traffic warrant lawyers sincerely hope that the 2014 Warrant Roundup has absolutely no effect on your life at all, however if you are one of those on the warrant list, we can help.
How Did You Land on the List of Outstanding Warrants?
A fairly high number of those who find there is an arrest warrant with their name on it, will be stunned, not to mention anxious and frightened of the possible consequences. Maybe you received a speeding ticket or a citation for another minor traffic infraction. You intended to appear before a judge and plead your innocence, or you intended to mail in the fine, however life got in the way and the incident was relegated to the back of a desk drawer. Regardless of how minor the citation, the City of Houston—and, indeed, the entire state of Texas—takes a dim view of those who forget such things. In addition to having an outstanding warrant for your arrest, you may have additional charges of Failure to Appear if you were slated to appear in court and did not.
What You Can Expect Once the Enforcement Phase Begins
Once the grace period has expired, you can expect to see law enforcement personnel from Houston and surrounding areas searching persistently for those whose name appears on an outstanding warrant. Many of these offenders will be identified through the license plate registration program, but no matter how you are identified make no mistake—those serving the warrants will not care whether you are at work, relaxing at home, attending class, taking your children to school or running errands. Your number one goal is, of course, to avoid the embarrassment and inconvenience of a public arrest. By posting a bond on your behalf, a Houston Warrant Roundup Lawyer can effectively end all threat of such an arrest, then will have the time to take a thorough look at your tickets and determine the best way to handle them. The goal of your Houston traffic ticket lawyer is to choose the option with the lowest level of long-term impact.
What Happens When You Pay Those Old Tickets
While it might seem that the easiest route is to go to the courthouse and pay up, consider the additional consequences you will suffer once you do that. Paying your tickets is the same as a guilty plea and results in a conviction. That conviction will add points to your driving record, resulting in higher insurance premiums, the necessity of paying a yearly surcharge to the State of Texas, and, in some cases, the loss of your driver’s license. Once a Houston Warrant Roundup Lawyer posts a bond on your behalf, you are not convicted of the underlying tickets, but will receive a new court date during which your knowledgeable Houston traffic bond lawyer will negotiate a much better outcome. In other words, the points to your driver’s license and the resulting repercussions can be largely avoided with one phone call to an experienced Houston Warrant Roundup law firm. If your warrant is from any of the following jurisdictions, we can help—don’t wait until it is too late and the 2014 Great Texas Warrant Roundup is underway.
· Houston Municipal Court
· Jersey Village Municipal Court
· Sugarland Municipal Court
· Stafford Municipal Court
· Missouri City Municipal Court
· Pasadena Municipal Court
· City of South Houston Municipal Court
· Baytown Municipal Court
· Harris County Justice of the Peace Precinct 1, Place 1, Judge Gorczynski
· Harris County Justice of the Peace Precinct 1, Place 2, Judge Patronella
· Harris County Justice of the Peace Precinct 3, Place 1, Judge Parrott
· Harris County Justice of the Peace Precinct 4, Place 1, Judge Adams
· Harris County Justice of the Peace Precinct 4, Place 2, Judge Lawrence
· Harris County Justice of the Peace Precinct 5, Place 1, Judge Ridgway
· Harris County Justice of the Peace Precinct 5, Place 2, Judge Williams
· Harris County Justice of the Peace Precinct 7, Place 2, Judge Burney
· Harris County Justice of the Peace Precinct 8, Place 1, Judge Williamson
· Harris County Justice of the Peace Precinct 8, Place 2, Judge Ditta