Yeah, and the smarter municipalities around here advertise that they’re going to do this beforehand, mentioning that they could be more lenient if you turn yourself in. That way, at least some of them get motivated to clear the warrant without you having to track them down.
My sister actually turned herself in on a warrant for an unpaid ticket (not near one of the “we’re coming by to see you” advertisements), intending to clear it by sitting in jail over the weekend. They were full, so they told her to come back next week. Sometimes, you can’t even get arrested if you try.
Yes. Here it’s called the Transaction Information for the Management of Enforcement System, or TIME System for short. Other states have different names for it SCMODS. Anyway, if I run an Alabama license here in Wisconsin I’m actually running through the Alabama data base.
A warrant will come up with different standards as well. Body Only, Cash only, [Particular State] only, even limited to counties. I can have a subject detained in Milwaukee County with a warrant out of Brown County that is limited to Brown County. Meaning I have no authority to hold him on that warrant.
Hell, some years ago I had a guy detained for prowling that had a felony warrant out of Iowa for attempted murder via arson. They would only extradite if he was in a county that bordered the state of Iowa! You can bet that guy never goes anywhere that borders Iowa.
Most states are also members of the national drivers compact (mine isn’t). So if you fail to pay a fine in one state you can find your license suspended in your own state. We only issue traffic cites to Wisconsin drivers and drivers from states that border Wisconsin (for some stupid reason Indiana is included in that). All other out of state offenders have to post bond.