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arrest warrant

An arrest  warrant is a document issued by a judge  or magistrate  that authorizes the police to take someone accused of a crime into custody . An arrest warrant  is issued by the competent authority upon a showing of probable cause , which means a warrant may be issued if a reasonable person  would believe the information at hand is sufficient to suggest criminal activities.

Arrest warrants serve the purpose of protecting people from unlawful  arrests under the Fourth Amendment . The warrant also gives an actual notice  to the person or persons being arrested  about the charges  pressed against them.

An arrest warrant is preferred, but not required, to make a lawful arrest.

In City of Saint Paul v. Adolph Toblera , the Supreme Court of Minnesota defined an arrest warrant as “a judicial process by which, in the name of the state, a defendant is brought before the court to answer a criminal charge made against him.”

In Bienenstock v. McCoy et. al. , the Supreme Court of New York stated that an arrest warrant “is a judicial order or command, in writing, in the name of the people, signed by an authorized judicial officer commanding the arrest of the defendant named for the crime charged therein.”

[Last reviewed in February of 2025 by the Wex Definitions Team
]

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