Bench warrants provide the judicial system with a unique tool to ensure those charged with a crime appear in court when required.

If you were charged with a crime, you need to take a bench warrant very seriously. Those with outstanding bench warrants or those seeking to prevent the issuance of a bench warrant should understand their options.

What is a bench warrant? 

A bench warrant is issued by the judge overseeing a criminal case, typically a misdemeanor charge like a DUI or traffic violation.

However, bench warrants can also be issued in more serious felony cases.

Bench warrants are issued only after the defendant has failed to appear in court. This typically occurs when a criminal defendant is currently out on bond or is on probation and neglects to appear in court on a scheduled court date. 

Typically judges also issue a bond amount on bench warrants. 

Once a bench warrant is issued, law enforcement within Florida and elsewhere will be notified of the bench warrant upon the defendant’s identification. Addressing bench warrants as quickly as possible is best to prevent issues with a criminal case. 

How does a bench warrant differ from an arrest warrant or an alias capias warrant? 

As mentioned above, bench warrants are used in many misdemeanor cases where a defendant has failed to appear in court.

In addition, bench warrants provide notice to law enforcement agencies to detain a person after identification and investigation. 

However, other types of warrants include arrest warrants and alias capias warrants.

Arrest warrants

An arrest warrant is a document issued by a judge authorizing law enforcement to detain a criminal suspect, search their person and property, and seize property under the suspicion of criminal misconduct.

Arrest warrants are really not that common. Most arrests are made based upon probable cause at the scene of a crime.

Alias capias warrants

Similar to a bench warrant, a judge overseeing an ongoing criminal case can issue this type of warrant once the defendant fails to appear in court.

These differ from bench warrants because alias capias warrants are issued in felony cases and signal to law enforcement that the warrant be actively pursued. 

Further, a person arrested on an alias capias warrant cannot be released on bond.

Addressing bench warrants

Bench warrants can result in many consequences for a criminal defendant, including revocation of probation, forfeiture of bond money, additional court costs and fees, and additional criminal charges.

Therefore, when addressing a bench warrant, it is best to engage the services of an experienced Florida bench warrant attorney. 

When addressing a bench warrant, a defendant has multiple options to resolve the warrant before it negatively affects the person’s criminal case, which include: 

• Motioning to the court to withdraw the warrant because it was issued improperly. 
• Filing a Motion to Withdraw or Quash the warrant stating that the failure to appear was unintentional or unavoidable given the defendant’s circumstances. 
• Surrendering to the court or law enforcement. 
• Negotiating the parameters of surrendering to the court or law enforcement with the assistance of legal counsel. 

Consequences of a bench warrant

If a criminal defendant believes a bench warrant has been issued for their arrest, they should immediately contact their attorney. Being arrested on a bench warrant without attempting to resolve the warrant can dramatically harm one’s criminal case and can result in incarceration.

Lastly, bench warrants can appear on a person’s criminal record, which could impact that person’s credit score, job opportunities, social service benefits, housing, custody, and overall social standing in one’s community.

Contact us today

If you or a loved one has recently been charged with a crime and failed to appear in court, there is a good chance that the judge overseeing the case has issued a bench warrant.

Without proper representation, bench warrants can create havoc in a person’s life and often result from circumstances that can be rationally explained to the judge.

The Orlando criminal defense attorneys with Katz & Phillips, P.A. have experience addressing numerous bench warrants on behalf of clients. Contact us today for a consultation.

Many people believe that an assault charge requires physical contact or injury, but this isn’t necessarily the case. In fact, Florida assault charges involve no physical contact at all.

As a result, you may be surprised to learn that you’re facing an assault charge even when the accuser wasn’t injured. Keep reading to learn why this can happen and how Florida treats assault cases.

Elements required for an assault charge in Florida

Assault is defined under Florida Statute § 784.011 as an unlawful threat to do violence to another person. The following must also be true:

• The alleged perpetrator intended to threaten the other person.
• The alleged perpetrator had an apparent ability to carry out the threat.
• The threat involved an act that created a reasonable fear in the other person that violence is imminent.

Assault vs. battery

Understanding why an injury isn’t required for an assault charge is easier when you consider the difference between assault and battery.

Under Florida Statute § 784.03, battery is defined as intentional touching that’s either against the will of another person or results in physical injury.

In other words, where assault involves only a threat of harm, battery involves physical contact with the alleged victim.

For this reason, someone can still be charged with assault if physical contact or injury ultimately occurred, but the assault charge wouldn’t be for physical contact. Instead, it would be for the threat of violence that may have preceded the actual physical contact.

It’s possible to face charges for both assault and battery, but they’re two separate crimes under Florida law.

Examples of assault charges without physical injury

While physical contact often follows threats of violence, some situations involve only a threat of physical harm, and no actual contact ever occurs.

Here are some examples of situations where an assault charge could be made without any physical injury or contact:

• Aiming a gun at someone and threatening to shoot
• Running directly toward someone with a knife drawn
• Raising a fist in the direction of another person in a menacing manner
• Verbally telling someone you will hit them while displaying threatening body language
• Throwing an object in the direction of someone else but failing to make contact

In each of these scenarios, no physical contact or injury has taken place.

However, the alleged perpetrator still threatened violence and caused a reasonable fear of imminent physical harm, so these situations would likely meet the criteria for a Florida assault charge.

Possible defenses against assault charges

Although assault alone doesn’t involve physical harm to the alleged victim, Florida law takes this crime seriously, and jail or prison time is a real possibility.

Fortunately, there may be several defenses available in your case that can help you get the penalties reduced or avoid conviction altogether.

The subjective nature of many of the elements of assault opens up the possibility for certain defenses.

For example, if you can demonstrate that you had no apparent ability to carry out the alleged threat or that it wasn’t reasonable for the other person to fear imminent violence, you could argue that your situation doesn’t meet the criteria for an assault conviction. Self-defense and lack of intent are also possible defense strategies that may be applicable in your case.

Other possible defenses involve challenging the evidence. If law enforcement violated your rights during the arrest process, or if the evidence against you is deemed insufficient, this could be grounds to have your charges dismissed.

Our criminal defense lawyers are here to help

Defending an assault charge is a challenging task that requires significant legal knowledge and experience, and it’s not something to attempt alone. If you’ve been accused of assault in Florida, Katz & Phillips, P.A. may be able to help.

Our criminal defense lawyers in Orlando can review the facts of your case and evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of each potential defense.

From there, we’ll get to work fighting for the best possible outcome. Contact us today at (321) 332-6864 to get started with a consultation.