Warrants

The Warrants Division serves warrants, criminal summons and show cause orders.

A warrant is an official authorization which gives the power for law enforcement officials to engage in an activity. A warrant can be for an arrest of a suspected individual, searching of premises, or bringing an individual to court. A summons, on the other hand, is an official request made by a court for an individual to be present on a specific date and time to inquire after charges that have been made. The main difference between a summons and a warrant is that while a warrant gives authority for law enforcement officials to perform an action, a summons requests the individual to be present for an inquiry. If an individual ignores a summons, the next step would be the issuance of a warrant. Inquires of a outstanding warrant will not be done over the phone.

A show cause order may be issued for the following reasons:

• Failure to pay child support.
• Failure to pay alimony.
• Failure to comply with custody or visitation directives.
• Failure to produce documents required in a Court Order.
• Failure to do anything required by a Court Order.