Municipal Court - Warrants, Bonds and Jail Information
Warrants
A warrant is an order for the defendant’s arrest, so that he or she may be brought before the Court in person to answer to a pending criminal charge. A judge can issue a warrant if:
- a summons by mail will not be enough to encourage a defendant to appear in court, or
- the defendant misses a known court date, or
- the defendant violates any condition of his or her release, or
- the defendant is accused of violating probation or any other sentencing order of the Court.
If a defendant is arrested on a Gilbert warrant, the Gilbert Police Department will transport the defendant to the Gilbert Municipal Court within twenty-four hours of the arrest. (Note: if the defendant has warrants out of more than one court, he or she will be taken to one court per day.)
If a defendant discovers that he/she has a warrant out of the Gilbert Municipal Court, he/she should appear in person before this Court as soon as possible during business hours to answer to the warrant. When the defendant arrives at court, he/she will be asked whether the bond (see below) can be posted in full. If the defendant cannot post the bond, the defendant will report to a courtroom to appear before a judge, as soon as a judge becomes available. The judge will set the next court date and will determine whether the defendant must post a bond (see below) to secure his or her appearance for the next court date.
Note: defendants with active warrants are advised to arrive at court prepared to pay the cash bond amount. An ATM machine is located in the court lobby.
Bonds
If the defendant wants to get out of custody before he or she is transported to court, he or she must post a bond. The bond amount falls within the judge’s discretion and is based on a variety of factors, including risk of flight, financial resources, and prior criminal history. All warrants for misdemeanor offenses will state the bond amount that the defendant must pay before he or she can be released from custody. The defendant will not be released from custody to get the bond money, but he or she will be permitted to use a phone. The Gilbert Municipal Court accepts only cash bonds.
If the bond is posted, the money will be held to make sure the defendant appears for all future court dates and follows any other release conditions ordered by the judge. If those instructions are followed, the bond shall be returned to the person who posted the bond, in full, at the end of the case. If the defendant fails to appear on a scheduled court date or violates any other release condition, the bond can be forfeited and a new warrant can be issued for the defendant’s arrest.
Jail
The Town of Gilbert houses all of its prisoners in the various Maricopa County Jail facilities. Defendants who are ordered to self-surrender to jail will be instructed by the judge as to how, where, and when to report.
If you know someone who was arrested in the Town of Gilbert, but do not know where he or she is now being held, you can call the Gilbert Police Department to see if and where he or she is in custody. The police can also tell you how to arrange to pay the bond for an individual in custody on a Gilbert charge. Defendants who have been arrested in Gilbert and cannot post bond shall be transported to a Maricopa County Jail facility and held there until their next court appearance in Gilbert or until their bond is posted, whichever comes first.