Waltham police recently arrested two teenagers with the help of a SWAT team. Following a spotting by law enforcement officers days before the arrest, the teenagers ran off which led law enforcement to call for backup. After learning that one of the parties was not going to cooperate and given the severity of the charges, law enforcement called in a SWAT team to help.
After the SWAT unit arrived, it went into the teenager’s apartment and talked to one of the young adults, who was in his bedroom with a knife. Rather than work with law enforcement, the teenager later climbed out of his bedroom window. Law enforcement instructed the teenager to drop his knife several times before he listened and was arrested.
One of the teenagers was arrested on several charges including assault and battery on a law enforcement officer as well as motor vehicle larceny, receiving stolen property, resisting arrest, failing to stop for a police officer, and assault with intent to murder. The second teenager had a warrant out for resisting arrest and was also charged with carrying a dangerous weapon.
Having a warrant for your arrest can be a confusing situation. Because many people are not certain about how this process works, they end up making mistakes that jeopardize the outcome of their case. Realize that whether or not you are innocent or committed the criminal offense to which the warrant relates, there are some actions that you should and some that you should not take in responding.
How to Respond to Warrants
There are some critical safety suggestions to remember if you find out that a warrant has been issued for your arrest:
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Always address the warrant. While you might hope that it will, the warrant will never go away. Trying to stop thinking about the warrant will not make it go away. Instead, a criminal defense lawyer can help you turn yourself into law enforcement on your terms. This way you can avoid having the police burst into your home like they did in the story above.
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Never to try to run from a warrant. In this situation, you will only end up facing additional charges in addition to the previous offenses. These charges often include failing to stop for law enforcement or resisting arrest. This means not just driving off, but also not flying or traveling in any way.
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Even though a criminal defense lawyer will often recommend that you surrender yourself to law enforcement, it is almost always a better idea to discuss this strategy with an attorney first.
Speak with a Massachusetts Criminal Defense Attorney
If you discover that a warrant has been issued for your arrest, one of the best steps that you can take is promptly speak with a knowledgeable lawyer who can help you determine the best strategy to respond.
Contact attorney Edward R Molari today to schedule a free case evaluation.