Mr. Smith failed to make court-mandated child support payments, so the judge held him in contempt of court and issued a bench warrant for his arrest.
bench warrant
Definition
An arrest warrant issued directly by a sitting judge or magistrate to a law-enforcement officer in a criminal or civil court proceeding. The bench warrant authorizes the arrest of an individual who has been held in contempt of court, especially when the criminal defendant on bail makes a nonappearance or when a witness under subpoena does not appear for hearing or a trial. In the event that an individual was on bail, the court will usually set a higher bail amount or eliminate bail altogether.
Definition from Nolo’s Plain-English Law Dictionary
An arrest warrant issued by a judge while sitting on the bench, holding court. A bench warrant is used when a defendant on bail fails to show up, or when a witness under subpoena fails to appear. The judge will usually set bail at the same time. Bench warrants for lesser matters (such as failing to appear to answer to a traffic ticket) may simply be noted on the defendant's record. If the defendant is stopped later by the police for any reason, the police will have the ability to act on the warrant and arrest the person.
Definition provided by Nolo’s Plain-English Law Dictionary.
August 19, 2010, 5:11 pm
“The Clerk’s Office issued a ‘Criminal Notice’—which was sent to Reeves and his counsel—specifying the time, date, and location of the arraignment and directing counsel to make sure Reeves would be present. On June 5, Reeves did not appear. Counsel said he had spoken with Reeves and informed him of the arraignment, but did not know where he was. The court issued a bench warrant. Nothing was heard from Reeves until he was arrested for another narcotics offense eleven months later. The bench warrant was executed and Reeves returned to the district court on May 21, 2007, and arraigned on the charges from the May 2, 2006 indictment.” J. Brown, United States v. Reeves, 586 F.3d 20, 22 (D.C. Cir. 2009).
