Calaveras County Warrant Records

Calaveras County warrant records are held by the Sheriff Office at 891 Mountain Ranch Road in San Andreas. This rural county in the Sierra Nevada foothills has about 45,000 people and no online warrant search tool. Active arrest warrants and bench warrants issued by the Superior Court must be checked by calling or visiting the Sheriff Office or courthouse. The Superior Court sits at 891 Mountain Ranch Road, the same complex as the Sheriff. Most warrant checks happen over the phone or in person at the records window. Calaveras County is known for its Gold Rush history but today it is a quiet place with small towns like Angels Camp and Copperopolis. If you think you have a warrant here, call the Sheriff at 209-754-6500 and ask for the records division to get accurate info.

Check for Warrants in Calaveras County

Call the Sheriff Office. The main number is 209-754-6500. Ask for the records division. Tell them you want to do a warrant check. They need your name and date of birth. Most of the time they can look you up and tell you over the phone if you have a warrant. If you do, they will tell you what the charge is and how much bail is set at. Some warrants let you turn yourself in at a set time. Others mean you need to come in right away.

You can also visit the Sheriff Office in person. The address is 891 Mountain Ranch Road in San Andreas. Bring a photo ID. Go to the front desk and ask for a warrant check. This takes a few minutes. If you have a warrant, be ready for what comes next. Some warrants allow you to post bail and walk out. Others mean you get arrested on the spot. It depends on the charge and whether the judge set bail or ordered no bail.

The Superior Court can also help with bench warrants. Call the court clerk and ask about your case. If you missed a court date, the clerk can tell you if a bench warrant was issued. They can also tell you when the next available hearing is to clear the warrant. Many courts in California let you come in early on a special calendar and see the judge without going to jail first. Ask the clerk if Calaveras County has a clear warrant calendar.

Calaveras County Sheriff Office

The Sheriff Office is at 891 Mountain Ranch Road in San Andreas. This is the main building for the Sheriff department and the county jail. All warrants in Calaveras County are served by the Sheriff or by local police working with the Sheriff. The Sheriff has deputies who go out and pick up people with active warrants. If you know you have a warrant, it is better to turn yourself in than to wait and get arrested at home or work.

When you turn yourself in, the Sheriff will book you. That means they take your photo, fingerprints, and put you in a cell. If your bail is low enough, you may be able to post it and get out within a few hours. If the bail is high or if the warrant says no bail, you stay in jail until your next court date. The jail in San Andreas is a small facility. It can hold around 100 inmates. Space can be tight so it may take a while to process you.

For records and copies of arrest reports, the Sheriff Office charges fees. Most counties in California charge around 25 to 50 cents per page. Clearance letters may cost more. Ask the records clerk about fees before you request documents. Some reports take a few days if they have to pull files from storage or contact other agencies.

The Sheriff also provides custody services for Alpine County. Alpine County is a small mountain county to the east that does not have its own jail. If someone is arrested on an Alpine County warrant, they may be held in the Calaveras County Jail until their court date in Markleeville.

Superior Court and Bench Warrants

Bench warrants in Calaveras County come from the Superior Court in San Andreas. The courthouse is at 891 Mountain Ranch Road, the same location as the Sheriff Office. A judge issues a bench warrant when you do not show up to court as ordered. This can be for any type of case. Traffic tickets, misdemeanor crimes, or felony charges all can lead to bench warrants if you skip your court date.

California Penal Code section 978.5 at leginfo.legislature.ca.gov covers how bench warrants work. A judge can issue a bench warrant any time you fail to appear. The statute says the warrant can be issued if you were ordered to personally appear and you did not show up. Once the warrant is out, any law enforcement officer in California can arrest you.

To clear a bench warrant, you go back to the court. Call the criminal clerk first. They can tell you if there is a clear warrant calendar. That is a special court session where people with warrants can come in and see the judge without being arrested first. You show up early in the morning and sign in. The judge calls your name later that day and asks why you missed the first date. If you have a good reason, the judge may recall the warrant and set a new court date. If not, the judge may increase your bail or order you to stay in custody.

For traffic warrants, you may be able to pay a fine to clear the warrant. Call the court and ask if your case is eligible for a payment. If you pay the fine in full, the court will recall the warrant and notify the DMV if your license was suspended. You can also show up at the courthouse and pay at the clerk window. Bring cash, money order, or check. Some courts take credit cards but not all.

Note: Court fees for certified copies are around $40 plus 50 cents per page in most California counties including Calaveras.

No Online Warrant Search Available

Calaveras County does not have an online warrant search tool. You cannot look up warrants from home through a county website. The only way to check is to call or visit the Sheriff Office or the court. This is common for small rural counties in California. They do not have the budget or technology to put warrant databases online.

Some third party websites claim to search warrants for you. Be careful with these services. They may charge a fee and give you old or inaccurate info. The best way to get accurate information is to go straight to the source. Call the Sheriff or the court and ask them directly. It is free and you get the right answer.

If you want to check your own criminal history across all of California, you can request it from the California Department of Justice. The DOJ keeps records of every arrest and conviction in the state. It costs $25 to get your own record. You need to submit fingerprints and fill out a form. Visit oag.ca.gov/fingerprints/record-review to see how to order your record.

This will show you any warrants or arrests from Calaveras County or any other county in California.

California Warrant Laws

Warrants in California are governed by state law. Penal Code sections 813 through 829 cover arrest warrants. These laws spell out what an arrest warrant must include and how police get one from a judge. An officer writes up facts that show a crime took place. A judge reads it and signs the warrant if there is enough proof. The warrant lists your name, the charge, and the bail amount. Read the full text at leginfo.legislature.ca.gov if you want to understand the process.

Bench warrants are in Penal Code section 978.5 as noted above. Traffic warrants fall under Vehicle Code section 40508 at leginfo.legislature.ca.gov which makes it a misdemeanor to willfully fail to appear in court on a traffic ticket. If you sign a promise to appear and then you do not show up, you break that promise and the court can issue a warrant.

The court must give you notice before they issue a warrant for a traffic case. Vehicle Code section 40515 says the court has to wait 20 days after you miss your court date. You should get a notice in the mail telling you that a warrant will be issued if you do not deal with the case. If you get that notice, act fast. Call the court and set a new date before the warrant goes out.

California Public Records Act rules are in Government Code sections 7920 through 7931. Criminal records and warrants are generally not public under the Public Records Act. Penal Code section 11105 restricts access to criminal history info. Only law enforcement and certain agencies can see the full files. You can request your own record but you cannot get someone else's record without their consent or a court order.

Nearby Counties

Calaveras County is in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada. Several counties border Calaveras and each has its own warrant system.

Amador County is to the north. Their Sheriff Office is in Jackson at 701 Clinton Road. Amador County has a similar setup to Calaveras with no online warrant search.

Alpine County is to the east in the high mountains. Alpine County is very small and contracts jail services with Calaveras County. Their court is in Markleeville and only holds hearings on Mondays.

Tuolumne County is to the south. Tuolumne County Sheriff is in Sonora. They use a CitizenRIMS portal for some records but you still need to call for warrant checks.

San Joaquin County is to the west in the Central Valley. Their Sheriff Records office is at 7000 Michael N. Canlis Blvd in French Camp. Call them at 209-468-4408 for warrant checks in San Joaquin County.

Stanislaus County is to the southwest. Stanislaus has a court portal at stanportal.stanct.org where you can search cases. Their Sheriff Records is in Modesto.

If you are not sure which county has a warrant for you, check all the counties where you have lived or had legal issues. Warrants do not go away on their own. They stay active until you deal with them in court.