Arrest warrant

knowall123

I was in my local Garda station today getting a form signed. The guard told me theres an arrest warrant for me from a previous address from a few years ago. He said he should really arrest me and hold me until court on Monday but said to just hand myself in next week.
Its likely an unpaid parking/traffic fine, I've really no idea.
How can I go about finding out what the warrants for??
Thanks

Victor

Ask the Garda?

Little CuChulainn

Contact the Garda in charge of warrants for your area. He can tell you what it's about and arrange for it to be executed. Depending on the kind of warrant, it may be possible to simply pay the outstanding fine.

knowall123

Victor wrote: »

Ask the Garda?

He said if he goes back in the office to check his superintendent would see and tell him to take me in, he wouldn't show me the printout either, it was all pretty strange

knowall123

Little CuChulainn wrote: »

Contact the Garda in charge of warrants for your area. He can tell you what it's about and arrange for it to be executed. Depending on the kind of warrant, it may be possible to simply pay the outstanding fine.

I'll make a few calls Monday morning, I don't really know where to ring though. I couldn't find a warrants office on Google. Thanks

Little CuChulainn

knowall123 wrote: »

I'll make a few calls Monday morning, I don't really know where to ring though. I couldn't find a warrants office on Google. Thanks

Just ring your local station and ask who deals with warrants.

knowall123

Little CuChulainn wrote: »

Just ring your local station and ask who deals with warrants.

Will do, thanks

conorh91

Not commenting on the specifics of the OP's experience, because it goes without saying that s/he should comply with the Garda's request.

However, the Garda attitude to old or stale warrants will not improve until the courts do something about it. A person to whom a warrant is addressed has no discretion in attempting its execution. There is a legal obligation, being in wilful default of which is an offence.

I'm not blaming AGS for this, considering the work pressures they are under. There are over 100,000 warrants outstanding or expired across the country, and this figure will not change until some judges stop renewing or replacing them on demand. Such a policy will leave AGS no choice but to execute all warrants promptly.

knowall123

Just to update on this, I rang the Garda station down the country which to where it was addressed, on my first attempt they wouldn't discuss it over the phone, the following morning I tried again and a different guard told me pretty much all he knew. He couldn't find out what it was for but was able to tell me what court had issued it. It was a court in Dublin and I knew exactly what it was for from that. Its not going to be an issue for me, it will be executed by appointment in the next few days. It was for me but was sent to my old address in error.
Thanks for the comments / help

Victor

conorh91 wrote: »

Such a policy will leave AGS no choice but to execute all warrants promptly.

.. or not, as it so suits them.

There is the big problem of it being difficult to trace people, which isn't helped by the policies and procedures of the various organs of state, including the Garda. It took them 2 days of exasperated searching to find me, a willing witness, living at the address I had been at for 5 years, which they had the whole time.

FordDriver

knowall123 wrote: »

He said if he goes back in the office to check his superintendent would see and tell him to take me in, he wouldn't show me the printout either, it was all pretty strange

In other words his super would tell him do his job. A warrant out for someone and the cops tells him come back next week lol for cops

conorh91

Victor wrote: »

.. or not, as it so suits them.

I would disagree there. I think a strict approach by the courts would force AGS to execute warrants promptly, or run the risk of adverse media attention and antagonizing public opinion against AGS.

The current situation where an arrest or committal warrant may effectively run in perpetuity means that AGS, burdened by other work, simply place some warrants near the bottom of the list.

Little CuChulainn

Yeah it would be awful if the media targeted AGS.