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Criminal defense · Summerville, SC

Bench Warrants and Arrest Warrants in South Carolina: How to Check and What to Do

A warrant does not go away, and being picked up at work or at a traffic stop is the worst way to deal with it. There is a better one.

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The short answer

A bench warrant is issued by a judge when you miss a court date or violate a court order; an arrest warrant is issued on an officer's sworn affidavit of probable cause. Both stay active until they are served or recalled, and a bench warrant on a traffic case also suspends your license. You can check for warrants through the county's public case index or by having a lawyer call the court, which does not expose you the way calling the sheriff yourself can. The fix for a bench warrant is a motion to recall it and reset the case; the fix for an arrest warrant is a planned surrender with the bond hearing arranged so you are processed and released the same day.

Two kinds of warrants

  • Arrest warrants are issued by a magistrate or municipal judge on an officer's sworn affidavit that there is probable cause you committed a crime (S.C. Code § 22-5-110). Jack has written hundreds; he knows what a sufficient affidavit looks like and what a deficient one looks like, and the affidavit is the first thing we attack.
  • Bench warrants are issued by the judge when you fail to appear for a court date or violate a bond condition or other order (S.C. Code § 22-5-115). In magistrate and municipal court the judge may instead try you in your absence, convict you and suspend your license for failing to pay. About ninety days after a bench warrant issues, the court moves the case to failure-to-appear status, where it waits indefinitely for you to be stopped.

How to find out whether there is a warrant

  1. Search the public index. Dorchester, Berkeley and Charleston counties post pending cases and court dates on the South Carolina Judicial Branch's public index. A case with a missed date and a bench warrant usually shows a disposition code that tells the story.
  2. Do not call the sheriff yourself. The sheriff's office and the magistrate's court can confirm active warrants, but a call that gives your name and location can prompt a visit. If an officer or investigator asks you to “come in and talk,” there is a reasonable chance a warrant already exists.
  3. Let us check. We confirm whether a warrant exists and what it charges through the issuing court or agency without exposing you, and we find out whether the case has gone to failure-to-appear status or been tried in your absence.

Lifting a bench warrant

If you missed a court date, the remedy is a motion to recall the bench warrant and reset the case, which is faster and cheaper than being arrested on it. Many people miss dates because the notice went to an old address or the date was moved; courts in Dorchester and Berkeley counties are generally willing to reset once when counsel appears with you and explains. If the court already tried you in your absence, we move to reopen the case. If the DMV suspended your license for the failure to appear, clearing the case is also the first step to reinstating it, and until then you should not drive.

Surrendering on an arrest warrant

  1. Do not wait for the knock. Warrants are served at traffic stops, at work and at 6 a.m. at home. None of those lets you prepare.
  2. Arrange the surrender. We schedule a time to turn yourself in at the detention center with the bond hearing arranged. In Dorchester County, bond court sits at the Summerville magistrate's office at 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. every day, including weekends and holidays, and arrests are booked at the Dorchester County Detention Center on Hodge Road in Summerville; Berkeley County uses the Hill-Finklea Detention Center in Moncks Corner and Charleston County the Al Cannon Detention Center in North Charleston. For some charges we can ask that a courtesy summons be used instead of an arrest.
  3. Prepare for bond. Employment letter, residence proof, family present. That is what the judge weighs. See bond hearings.
  4. Start the defense. A warrant is the beginning of a case, not a verdict.

Warrants from other counties or states

Charleston County warrants are served in Dorchester County and vice versa, and out-of-state warrants lead to extradition holds that can keep you in jail for weeks while the other state decides whether to come get you. We coordinate with the issuing jurisdiction so a surrender happens once, in the right place.

Frost first: if an officer or investigator calls and asks you to “come in and talk,” call us before you go.

Think there is a warrant with your name on it?

Call. We will find out quietly and arrange the surrender on your terms.

Schedule a consultation(843) 419-6653

Questions people ask

How do I check for a bench warrant in South Carolina?

Search the county's public case index for your name and look for a missed court date, or have a lawyer call the court. Calling the sheriff's office yourself can prompt an arrest.

What happens if I miss a court date in South Carolina?

In magistrate or municipal court the judge can issue a bench warrant or try you in your absence; on a traffic charge the DMV suspends your license for the failure to appear. After about ninety days the case goes to failure-to-appear status and the warrant waits for you.

How do I get a bench warrant lifted?

Your lawyer files a motion to recall the warrant and reset the case, and appears with you. Courts usually grant one reset when the reason is explained.

Will I have to spend the night in jail if I turn myself in?

Usually not when a surrender is arranged with a bond hearing scheduled. Dorchester County holds bond court twice a day, so processing and release often happen the same day.

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