Outstanding warrants from MN are simply arrest orders that have been issued a while ago and are yet to be served. In other words, there is no difference between an active warrant which was released an hour ago and outstanding orders for arrests that have been lying in the police database for years.
Since time does not impact the powers of an arrest warrants nor do these directives lapse, an outstanding warrant offers police officers the same degree of authority as an arrest decree that has been recently issued. Hence to understand how MN outstanding warrants function, it is imperative to learn about the process used for the issue of detention directives in the state.
The issuance of criminal wants
Rule 3.01 of the Minnesota Court procedures deals with the release of detention instruments. It states that a complaints made by the office of the sheriff to procure a warrant has to be supported by affidavits that detail the criminal act, the evidence collected and sworn witness testimony.
Furthermore, the law is clear that a summons ought to be issued in lieu of a warrant unless there is reasonable certainty that the defendant will not pay heed to a summons and will not appear in court as ordered. Arrest warrants are issued by the sitting magistrate in case of felonies and other criminal acts which are punishable by incarceration. On the other hand, offenses that only carry a monetary penalty can be dealt with by the county clerk.
The direction and execution of MN outstanding warrants
All arrest warrants issued in the state are directed at law enforcement agents from within MN and other areas of the country. A warrant contains explicit orders for police officers to take the accused into custody and present him before the court in no more than 36 hours after arrest. Active warrants can only be served by officers of a law enforcement agency while summons can be served by anybody authorized the magistrate.
Arrest warrants from MN do not have any geographical restrictions placed on them; this means that they can be served at any place in the state or even outside. However, if the defendant is being charged with a misdemeanor, the warrant can only be served upon him inside his home in the 8 am and 10 pm time margin from Monday through Saturday.
Failure to appear warrants can get you into a lot of trouble in Minnesota. Unlike some other states, Minnesota has taken a very strict stand against people who fail to appear in court. In case of felonies, a person who is out on bail and fails to make an appearance for trial proceedings or sentencing can earn himself an additional 50% of the sentence.
This means that if an individual is being tried for a felony that carries a punishment of 10 years, he would get 15 years prison time if he fails to appear in court. Furthermore, a minimum sentence of 1 year and 1 day and a fine of $1500 has been imposed on felony failure to appear offenses. In case of misdemeanors, the prison time is reduced to 90 days and the monetary penalty is brought down to $1000.
Finding information on MN outstanding warrants
Fortunately, for applicants several sheriffs’ departments in the state offer access to their databases of outstanding warrants. Given below is a list of urls that you can visit to find arrest warrants from various counties within MN.
- Brown County: http://www.co.brown.mn.us/outstanding-warrants
- Dakota County: http://www.co.dakota.mn.us/lawjustice/warrants/pages/default.aspx
- Becker County: http://www.co.becker.mn.us/dept/sheriff/warrant.aspx
- Beltrami County: http://www.co.beltrami.mn.us/departments/lawEnforcement/letg/warrant2.html
- Chippewa County: http://www.co.chippewa.mn.us/LETG/warrant2.html
- Dodge County: http://www.co.dodge.mn.us/sheriff_outstandingarrests.html
- Crow Wing County: http://crowwing.us/index.aspx?nid=517
- Faribault County: http://frcsd.org/index.php/active-warrant-list
- Goodhue County: http://www.co.goodhue.mn.us/CIS_Reports/public%20warrant%20list.rpt.html
- Isanti County: http://www.isantisheriff.com/warrants.shtml
- Mille Lacs County: http://www.co.mille-lacs.mn.us/index.asp?Type=B_BASIC&SEC={405ABC54-8315-4C2F-92E3-B4C892FEF6ED}
- Olmsted County: http://www.co.olmsted.mn.us/sheriff/divisions/lec/hottopics/Pages/activewarrants.aspx
- Otter tail County: http://www.co.otter-tail.mn.us/sheriff/report/default.php
- Ramsey County: http://www.co.ramsey.mn.us/sheriff/warrants
- Stearns County: http://www.clickcomplete.com/jail/default.cfm/PID=1.2
- Wabasha County: http://www.co.wabasha.mn.us/warrants/public.php
- Yellow Medicine County: http://www2.co.ym.mn.gov/awlcustody/warrant2.html