If you missed your Court date, you may be concerned about whether or not there are warrants out against you. What you may not know is that an FTA in Municipal Court of Atlanta (hereafter, “MCOA”,) can also result in a license suspension. If you have missed a Court date, you should act swiftly to clear up the FTA. Failing to take action could result in your arrest. So what should you do?

To clear up an FTA in MCOA, you can go to the Courthouse and request a new Court date. The clerk will lift the warrant and place you on an “FTA Calendar.” Note that the license suspension will not be lifted until the Judge approves it at the FTA Calendar. Keep in mind that, until the warrant is lifted, if any officer finds that you have an active warrant, they would have the authority to arrest you. Although you probably do not have to worry about being arrested inside the Courthouse when you go to address your FTA, it is wise to enlist the help of an attorney to go with you or to ask the Court to lift the warrant on your behalf.

Once the warrant is lifted, you are no longer at risk of being arrested for the FTA. However, your license will remain suspended until the Judge releases the suspension. This will not happen until your Court date. In the meantime, continuing to drive on your suspended license puts you at risk. If you are stopped for a traffic offense (speeding, for example,) and the officer determines your license is suspended, not only will you get a speeding ticket, but you will also be charged with Driving on a Suspended License, a misdemeanor which can result in fines, additional jail time, and can suspend your license for six months.

Of course, it can be difficult to go about your daily life with a suspended license. We can help expedite things to get you an earlier Court date so you can get your license back and address the underlying charges. Missing a Court date can be serious, but you don’t have to address it alone. Give us a call. We are within walking distance of Municipal Court of Atlanta and we can walk down to get your FTA lifted same-day. For a free consultation with one of our attorneys, call 404581-0999. Written by Attorney Katherine A. Edmonds.