Motion to Withdraw Capias

Motion to Withdraw Capias

Florida Courts definitely love their Latin phrases.  The English translation for the Latin word “capias” is “that you take.”  It is a descriptive term for many different types of writs.  All of the writs have one thing in common and that is to take a person into custody.

Some clients don’t show up for court.  Dealing with that is simply part of the job description for criminal attorneys.  Knowing this fact, it is no surprise that I would recommend that you keep copies of all emails, text messages, letters and write a brief note in the case file after each conversation.  Why?  You want to be able to document the date and time when you informed your client of his/her court date.

A warrant will be issued for your client’s arrest if he or she happens to miss a court date.  In Florida, at least the part of Florida where I practice we call the warrant a capias.  You will need to file the following motion in order to get the capias “set aside,” “quashed” or “withdrawn.”  Check with the Judge’s assistant to see if the Judge has any type of special requirements for these motions.  Some judges require that the defendant personally appear for the hearing on this type of motion.

This motion is uploaded in docx file format for easy editing.

Download ( Motion-to-Withdraw-Capias.docx, DOCX, 13KB)