The term Washington Active Warrant refers to an arrest order issued by the magistrate of a district court in the state that commands law enforcement agencies to apprehend an individual. A warrant is issued on the basis of a formal complaint filed by the police or the victim of the crime with the sitting magistrate of a tribunal in the state that hears criminal matters.
A written affidavit mentioning the crime, the role of the accused in it, evidence and witnesses to the incident is submitted for procuring the warrant. The judge has to ensure that there is enough cause for a reasonable person to believe that the crime was indeed committed by the person in question before the warrant is issued.
AWashington active arrest warrant is a written document that bears the seal of the state of Washington and the judicial system in the form of the authorizing judge’s signature.The warrant will also has the name of the county in which it was issued and the date on which the document was issued along with an explanation of the crime for which the suspect is being arrested.
Once an active warrant is issued by the judge, it stays in effect till an arrest is made. While the Washington State Patrol offers information on conviction in the state along with other crime related data, they do not provide arrest records to private and individual applicants. This means that you cannot get information on active arrest warrants from WSP or the local law enforcement agency. These records are held back in the interest of public safety.
Also, an arrest does not always result in a conviction, so releasing such information would be a breach of the rights of the subject.If you are looking for active arrest warrants out in your name or against a person you know, it would be best to approach a third party provider. Privately maintained databases will often have arrest records from all over the country including every county in Washington State and they usually offer this data online.
There are also two official government offices that can help you in your search for Washington active arrest warrants. The issuing court will have all information pertaining to an arrest order. So, you can approach the Magistrate’s office of the county in which the warrant was issued for information on it.
Go the the state’s court website which offers a search option for court cases. Once you accept the terms and conditions, you will be directed to a page that lists the different courts in the state. In this case, you should choose the district and municipal courts. Use the name search tool and furnish relevant information to find out if an active warrant was issued against the subject of your inquiry.
However, you will notice that you need to know the name of the court or at least the county in which the warrant was issued to get your hands on warrant information or you will have to search through all the courts in all the counties of the state.
Another solution is to approach the clerk of court who maintains the dockets for the judicial entity that issued the warrant. However, you will need to visit the county clerk’s office in person for this information and if you have a warrant in your name, you will be arrested on the spot.
Active warrants are issued in both felony and misdemeanor cases depending on the severity of the crime. An active arrest warrant issued in Washington does not go out of effect. If it is not used to make an arrest within a reasonable period after its issuance, the order is merely stored into a central system as an outstanding warrant from where it can be accessed by peace officers from all over the country.