Yes, you can often get a warrant lifted during a warrant amnesty in St. Louis, but the events are held only now and then, and each one has its own dates, fees, and list of participating courts. No current event could be confirmed at the time of this update, so the safest step is to call the court that issued your warrant and ask what it offers right now.
This post explains how amnesty days work, what they cost, what they leave unresolved, and how a warrant can be lifted when no amnesty is running.
What Is Warrant Amnesty in St. Louis?
Warrant amnesty is a program that lets you get an arrest warrant cancelled and receive a new court date without being arrested. If you have a warrant for a traffic ticket or other misdemeanor in a municipal court, you may be able to get your warrant lifted for a small fee during Warrant Amnesty Days.
Amnesty does not dismiss the ticket or the charge. The warrant goes away, the court sets a new date, and the case continues from there. A court can still require a guilty plea, a payment plan, or a trial, depending on what you choose at that new date.
Amnesty also does not reach every kind of case. Past city events excluded DUI/DWI and leaving the scene of an accident, according to Fox 2 coverage of the 2019 program, so a warrant tied to a serious traffic offense may need an attorney instead.
Who Runs Warrant Amnesty Days in St. Louis?
Two kinds of organizations run warrant amnesty in the St. Louis area: a metro-wide program and individual courts. The metro-wide program is run by Better Family Life with St. Louis Community College, and many municipal courts in the city and county take part. The 2014 event was sponsored by St. Louis Community College and Better Family Life, Inc.
The City of St. Louis has also run its own events for city court warrants, including a 3-day amnesty in March 2019 and an amnesty week in February 2020, according to Fox 2 and St. Louis Public Radio. A few other municipal courts, such as Clayton, Richmond Heights, and Maplewood, have held their own amnesty days in past years.
Participation is a decision each court makes. Before paying for anything, check the list of participating courts or contact the court that issued your warrant to find out whether it is part of the program.
When Is the Next Warrant Amnesty Day in St. Louis?
The next warrant amnesty day has not been confirmed. Searches of recent court announcements turned up no verified St. Louis amnesty event dated 2024 to 2026, so any date you see on a social media post or a flyer is worth checking with the court itself.
Here are the past events that were verified, so you can see how often they come around and who ran them.
| When | Who Ran It | What It Covered |
|---|---|---|
| August 2014 | St. Louis Community College and Better Family Life | 3 days at 3 campuses, 65 municipal and county courts, $10 voucher |
| August 2018 | Better Family Life program | 65 participating municipalities, reported by St. Louis Public Radio |
| March 2019 | St. Louis Municipal Court | 3-day amnesty for city ordinance warrants, excluding DUI and leaving the scene |
| February 24-27, 2020 | St. Louis Municipal Court | Amnesty week for outstanding bench warrants |
| August 2021 | Metro program and City of St. Louis | $10 plus a small processing fee for the metro program; city Warrant Forgiveness Days that included a Circuit Court day |
| August 2022 | City of St. Louis | Warrant Reset Day at the municipal court on Market Street |
Sources: Fox 2, St. Louis Public Radio, and City of St. Louis announcements. Fees and participating courts changed from year to year, so a future event may have different terms.
The pattern is that amnesty events happen periodically, often in late summer, and the court’s own announcements are the reliable place to check.
How Do You Get a Warrant Lifted at an Amnesty Day?
You get a warrant lifted at an amnesty day by paying a small fee, completing the steps the program requires, and taking proof to the court that issued the warrant. At the 2014 metro event, here is what you had to do:
- Attend an Amnesty Day event and purchase a $10 voucher for each outstanding warrant issued against you.
- Attend a brief seminar while you are at the event.
- Take your voucher and $100 (to pay your bond) to the court that issued the warrant, and the court will lift your warrant and give you a new court date.
The $100 was applied to the fines and court costs owed in that case. Later events changed the amounts, and the City of St. Louis charged a lower flat amount at its own amnesty weeks, so the terms of the current event are what count.
If a missed payment caused your warrant, amnesty can also help. After the warrant is lifted, you can ask the judge to put your case back on the payment docket so you can keep paying the fine over time.
What Happens After Your Warrant Is Lifted?
After your warrant is lifted, the court gives you a new court date, and you still have to resolve the ticket or charge. Your options are as follows:
- Plead guilty and pay the fines and court costs that you owe to the court.
- Go to court and plead not guilty, at which point the judge will set a trial date for your case.
- Hire an attorney to represent you in court to get your traffic ticket or misdemeanor charge dismissed or reduced to a lesser offense.
Paying the fine is a guilty plea. A misdemeanor conviction goes on your criminal record, and a paid traffic ticket is reported to the Missouri Department of Revenue (DOR), which adds points to your driving record. Points are the reason many people hire an attorney at this stage instead of simply paying.
An attorney can negotiate a plea bargain deal with the Prosecutor and judge that may reduce a ticket to a non-moving, no-point violation. That outcome is possible, depending on the court and your driving record, and the traffic ticket service page explains how reductions work.
Can an Attorney Lift Your Warrant Without Amnesty Day?
An attorney can lift your warrant without amnesty day in many cases, and you will not have to attend an event. In many cases, you can hire an attorney to lift your warrant for you, and you won’t have to appear in court or pay a cash bond to get the warrant recalled. Andrea Rogers handles warrants for traffic tickets and misdemeanors in the St. Louis area.
The process is straightforward. Andrea contacts the court that issued the warrant, asks the judge to recall it, and gets a new court date. From there, she can work on a plea bargain deal, a dismissal, or a payment arrangement.
Her earlier post on getting a warrant lifted covers the same process in more detail.
How Do You Get a Warrant Lifted in Missouri Without an Amnesty Event?
You get a warrant lifted in Missouri without an amnesty event by asking the court that issued it to recall the warrant. You can do that through an attorney, or in some courts by appearing personally.
Some municipal courts let a person appear in person and ask for a one-time warrant cancellation, while others require an attorney or a bond. Rules differ from court to court, so call the court that issued the warrant before you go.
A step-by-step breakdown of the city process is in the earlier post on city warrants.
Why Might a Court Refuse to Lift Your Warrant?
A court may refuse to lift your warrant if you already pleaded guilty and then failed to pay the fine. If you have already appeared in court on your own to plead guilty (or you had a lawyer appear in court for you), and then you failed to pay the fine, many courts will not lift the warrant. In that situation, the court will require you to turn yourself in and pay the bond before they will lift your warrant.
That is why a phone call to the court matters before you buy a voucher or travel to an event. Some programs also do not cover older warrants that already received amnesty, and some exclude certain charges.
When a warrant does not qualify for amnesty, a lawyer is often the best way to address it. A guilty plea can also sometimes be withdrawn by an attorney, though that is a much more expensive and lengthy process.
What Happens If You Have a Warrant for a Traffic Ticket?
If you have a warrant for a traffic ticket, you can be arrested at any traffic stop, even as a passenger. A police officer who runs your name and finds the warrant can take you to jail, and you stay there until you post bond or see the judge at the next court date, which might be a week or more away.
Warrants usually start when a driver misses a court date or fails to pay a fine on time. A warrant can also lead to a license suspension, which is covered in the post on unpaid tickets.
Missing one court date is a common way to end up with a warrant, and the steps to take afterward are in the post on missed court dates.
How Long Does a Warrant Stay Active in Missouri?
A warrant stays active until the court recalls it or the person is arrested and brought before the judge. A warrant does not simply fade away with time, and an old one can surface years later during a traffic stop or a background check.
Andrea explained the same point in her post that warrants never expire. A warrant that looks forgotten can still be active, and the longer it stays open, the more likely it is to cause trouble at the worst moment.
Does a Warrant Show Up on a Background Check?
A warrant can show up on a criminal background check, depending on the kind of check and the court that issued it. An open warrant is one more reason to resolve a case sooner rather than later. The post on background checks explains what shows up and where.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Do I Find Out If I Have a Warrant?
Call the municipal court where the ticket or charge was filed and ask the clerk. Missouri Case.Net also lists many court cases online. Andrea can also check for you and explain what happens next.
Is Warrant Amnesty Free?
Not always. Past metro events charged a $10 voucher fee, and the court that issued the warrant could still require a bond or payment toward the fine. The fees change from event to event, so the program’s announcement is the place to confirm the current cost.
Does Warrant Amnesty Erase the Ticket?
No. Amnesty cancels the warrant and gives you a new court date, but the ticket or charge remains. You can still plead guilty, plead not guilty, or hire an attorney to try to get the charge dismissed or reduced.
Can I Be Arrested at an Amnesty Event?
Amnesty programs are designed to let people come forward without being arrested. Courts set their own rules, though, so confirm with the court that issued your warrant before you go. A court can handle a warrant differently if the charge is excluded from the program.
What Should I Bring to Get a Warrant Lifted?
Bring your ticket or case number if you have it, and money for any fee or bond the court requires. Calling the court first tells you what the court needs and the exact amount. Unpaid child support warrants are a family law matter that Andrea does not handle, so those need a different resource.
The Bottom Line
Warrant amnesty in St. Louis is a real way to lift a traffic or misdemeanor warrant for a small fee, but events happen periodically and each court decides whether to take part. Check the court’s announcements, call the court that issued your warrant, and know that a lawyer can often lift the warrant without waiting for an event.
Andrea handles every call and every case personally. She offers a free consultation with a flat fee price quote up front. She can also give you an estimate of the fines and court costs. Call her at 314-724-5059 or contact The Rogers Law Firm.
You can see what her services cost on the pricing page.
