In the state of Pennsylvania, police officers do not need an arrest warrant to place a person under arrest if they are endangering the personal security of any person or are endangering property whether it is public or private.
Although no arrest warrant is necessary for some circumstances when police do have an active warrant against an individual they have the authority to place them in handcuffs, detain them, then ultimately transport them to jail.
An officer can arrest a person with a warrant:
- At their place of residence
- In their place of work or business
- In their place of academic studies
- In any public place
Police do not need to give any warning or adhere to any privacy regulations. Suspects can not barter or negotiate an arrest with police if they have an active warrant against them. An arrest warrant is a demand, by the court, to bring a defendant in on charges to face criminal proceedings.
If you believe that you or somebody that you know has a warrant, we recommend that you do a Pennsylvania warrant search to know for sure so that you can take action on your own terms.
Active Warrants in Pennsylvania
If an individual has an active warrant against them in the state of Pennsylvania it means that a judge has decided that the person has enough probable cause against them to lead the courts to believe that they have committed a crime, or that they have evidence of a crime present in their home or on their person.
When a warrant is active it means that it has not yet been satisfied or executed. As long as a person has an active or outstanding warrant against them the police will be able to act on the orders within the warrant at any time.
An active warrant can result in:
- Immediate arrest and incarceration
- Search and seizure
- Being detained and released with a summons
Depending on the type of warrant that has been issued, and the instructions that are written within the warrant law enforcement may carry out the orders in various ways.
Types of Warrants in Pennsylvania
There are several types of warrants that the state of Pennsylvania will issue, including civil warrants and eviction warrants. However, the three types of warrants that are issued the most are:
- Arrest warrants
- Bench warrants
- Search warrants
If a person is issued an eviction warrant in the state of Pennsylvania it means that the landlord of the place they are renting has filed the proper paperwork against them in order to have them legally removed from the property within a specified manner of time. A person that is failing on their mortgage payments will experience the same kind of warrant.
Since a warrant can be issued for any number of reasons that surround an endless possibility of circumstances each one will be unique and have unique instructions. Some warrants will result in arrests, some will result in searches, and some will result with nothing more than a promise to appear in court. However, all of them are issued under the power of the law and will be executed in one way or another.
Warrant Records Search
Arrest Warrants in Pennsylvania
When a judge grants an arrest warrant in Pennsylvania, it will most likely be the result of a district attorney that has found significant evidence to suggest that a defendant has committed a crime. Once the evidence has been established, the DA will file charges against the defendant then request an arrest warrant be issued against the person.
Instances an arrest warrant is issued can be:
- Suspect left evidence at a crime scene
- Suspect was witnessed committing a crime
- Video surveilence cameras caught a crime and identified the suspect
In some cases, when it is necessary to make an arrest for the reason of public safety, police will request an arrest warrant during off business hours. Police can personally contact a judge so that an arrest warrant will grant them permission to forcefully enter a residence where a suspect could be hiding.
Police must provide the judge with reasonable probable cause that the suspect has committed a crime or, legally, the judge can not grant the warrant. However, it is up to the police and the judge to determine what indicates ”probable cause” for each circumstance.
Bench Warrants in Pennsylvania
A bench warrant in Pennsylvania is much like an arrest warrant in the sense that it gives police officers permission to arrest, detain, and transport the person named on the warrant to jail. The main difference between this kind of warrant and any other kind of warrant is that when the judge signs on into activity it is directly from the judges’ bench in the courtroom.
Bench warrants are issued as a result of a failure to comply with a court order.
- Failure to appear at a court hearing
- Failure to pay a fine on time
- Failure to show up for community service
- Failure to show up for work detail
- Failure to report for jury duty
Depending on the severity of the warrant and the circumstances that lead to its issuance the police can aggressively seek the person named on the warrant and use as many resources with as much energy as it takes to apprehend the defendant.
Or not.
In many cases when a person has an active bench warrant, they don’t even know about it until they get pulled over for a traffic issue.
Although police have the power to arrest the defendant on the spot and take them to jail, they will most likely give them a summons to appear in court to deal with the problem.
Search Warrants in Pennsylvania
In the state of Pennsylvania police can not search a person’s property unless they have permission from the person to search, or they have a valid search warrant. There are laws in place that are supposed to protect citizens from unreasonable search and seizure practices according to the Fourth Amendment, however, the police are able to use their own discretion on whether or not there is a threat to the safety of the general public that could merit the search of an individual.
Searches can be very difficult to glean worthwhile evidence from because in addition to the evidence being hard to find if the search is not conducted in a manner that is not specified in the warrant a savvy defense attorney can prove that the search was illegal and have the evidence thrown out of court.
A search warrant must include details such as:
- The name of the person that is to be searched
- The location that the search will be conducted in
- Where the officers are allowed to search
With a valid search warrant in effect, the person named in the warrant must allow the officers to conduct the search. Otherwise, they can be restrained and arrested.
If the officers that conduct the search find evidence that a crime is being committed they can arrest the suspect on the scene and bring them to jail to face charges.
A search warrant is not considered public information until after it has been executed. This means that it will be very unlikely for a person to know that there is an active search warrant against them until it is carried out.
***Regardless of which state you live in it is always wise to contact an attorney for any questions that you may have when it comes to warrant laws or any other legal concerns. The content found on this website is only for informational purposes and is not to be mistaken for legal advice.