“I think it’s fair to say, it’s a really bad idea to miss your court date. The smart thing to do is contact a lawyer immediately and work to resolve the problem. Waiting for police to pound on your door isn’t a good idea.”
You may be interested– Bill Powers, Criminal Defense Lawyer
You are viewing: What Happens When You Miss Court
The result of missing court varies depending on the seriousness and type of case or cases that are pending. If you fail to appear in court, a failure to appear or FTA may be issued against you and depending on the type charge an order for arrest or OFA may even be appropriate.
A judge may also issue a forfeiture of any bond paid as a result of a missed court date. That’s often referred to an Order of Forfeiture in the legal system.
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Failure to Appear “FTA”
A failure to appear is issued when a defendant or person accused of some violation misses a court date – typically for a traffic infraction. When an FTA is issued for a traffic ticket, the NCDMV receives notice from the Clerk of Court.
Until the case is cleared up, that may result in what’s called an indefinite suspension. In addition to the indefinite license suspension, there may also a FTA fee of $200.
Driving during this period of indefinite suspension, if you get caught driving without a valid license, can result in another charge called Driving While License Revoked. We call that DWLR in North Carolina. It’s technically different than DWLR Imp Rev, which relates to a revocation associated with impaired driving or some sort of DWI charges.
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Don’t wait. Your license is valuable. Most people need a valid license to get to work and generally survive. Failures to Appear have consequences.
What Should You do if You Have a FTA?
The procedure for striking a FTA differs from county to county. If at all possible, and as you might imagine, each case is different, it’s better to have the FTA stricken. Obviously there must be a legitimate legal basis for relief from the Court.
Not all counties will strike the $200 FTA fee. That’s a hefty penalty for forgetting to go to court.
Source: https://t-tees.com
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