New Hampshire Arrest Warrants

New Hampshire warrants are classified into three categories: search, arrest, and bench warrants. Search warrants allow law enforcement officers to enter a specified residence and search for a specified commodity. Search warrants expire after a designated time period. Arrest and bench warrants are also issued through a judge and cannot expire.

Once a warrant of arrest is issued, unless it is later reversed, it outstands until the individual is arrested and taken into custody. In order for a warrant of arrest to be issued, a police officer must have probable cause. Merely having suspicions about a crime will not result in a warrant granting. In domestic disputes a warrant of arrest is normally issued for the individual who began to incident, even if he or she did not cause any physical injury.

Bench Warrant
When an individual does not appear at his or her appointed court appearance, a bench warrant can be issued for his or her arrest. Those with bench warrants are those who have posted bonds for their bail. The judge presiding over the case can choose this option at his or her own discretion. When the individual has been apprehended by the police and taken into custody, he or she will be brought before the court.

When an individual fails to attend his or her court appearance, the court will most often assume that he or she has jumped bail. According to New Hampshire law in some cases when an individual does not appear in court after admitting to bail, the judge can require forfeiture of the bond and issued an arrest without a warrant. This is only possible if the individual is within New Hampshire state lines.

Making Arrests
When law enforcement officers have located an individual with an arrest warrant, they have the right to appear that a residency and take an individual into custody. Officers are required by law to state their presence and knock. If an individual is seen as a flight risk or may destroy evidence, law enforcement officers do have permission to break entrances of a residence.

New Hampshire law only requires these entrances to include windows and doors. Any other type of destruction is illegal. If an individual with a warrant of arrest has assistance in avoiding the police, those providing assistance - either family member or friends - will be subsequently charged with obstruction of justice.

Arrests without warrants are possible in some situations. If an individual is a danger to others or him or herself, or if a police officer witnesses a crime, an individual can legally be arrested without a warrant.

Searching
A common occurrence with arrest warrants is not being aware that there is a warrant of arrest at all. Websites provide specific searching for New Hampshire arrest warrants as well as search and bench warrants. A majority of websites offer search engines as specific as county and city searches.

At times databases allow warrant searches at no cost, while others require a fee as high as forty dollars. Some websites even recommend contacting a criminal defense attorney for legal advice and more detailed search options.