Charity calls arrest warrants for court no-shows a waste of police time

Transform Justice said that the issuing such warrants was often a case of the ‘punishment not fitting the crime’.

Ministry of Justice figures show 1,108 failure to appear warrants were issued in magistrates courts in the Derbyshire Local Criminal Justice Board area in 2019 – though this was a ​20 per cent drop on 2018.

Across England and Wales, more than 70,000 failure to appear warrants were issued, with defendants potentially receiving a fine or being sent to prison for the offence.

With 26,000 court hearings in Derbyshire last year, it means that failure to appear warrants were needed for around 4.3 per cent – above the 3.6 per cent average across England and Wales.

More than two-thirds of the warrants were issued for offences such as theft and burglary, which could be heard in either magistrates courts or crown courts.

John Bache, national chairman of the Magistrates Association, said the number of failure to appear warrants being issued was still very concerning.

He added: “When people do not attend court when required to do so it leads to delays in the justice system, which is a waste of scarce resources and may also be upsetting for victims.”

But Penelope Gibbs, director of Transform Justice, said: “Someone who doesn’t turn up for their court hearing may not have got the letter, or may have mental health problems or lead a chaotic life.

“They should of course turn up for their court hearing, but maybe the response to failure to appear may need to be different.”

Ms Gibbs added that failure to appear warrants were a poor use of police resources, particularly for people who ‘seldom pose an immediate threat to public safety’.

She suggested new approaches such as the use of text messages to remind people about trial dates and giving them a second chance to come to court if they can be reached by phone.

A Ministry of Justice spokesman said the warrants ensure people attend court and prevent further delays, but that the decision to issue them is a matter for the independent judiciary.