A. A law enforcement officer who has arrested a person on a misdemeanor charge or violation of city ordinance, without a warrant, may issue a citation to such person to appear in court.
B. In issuing a citation hereunder the officer shall proceed as follows:
1. The officer shall prepare a written citation to appear in court, containing the name and address of the cited person and the offense charged, and stating when the person shall appear in court. Unless the person requests an earlier date, the time specified in the citation to appear shall be at least five (5) days after the issuance of the citation.
2. One copy of the citation to appear shall be delivered to the person cited, and such person shall sign a duplicate written citation which shall be retained by the officer.
3. The officer shall thereupon release the cited person from any custody.
4. As soon as practicable, the officer shall file one copy of the citation with the court specified therein and shall deliver one copy to the prosecuting attorney.
C. In any case in which the judicial officer finds sufficient grounds for issuing a warrant, he or she may issue a summons commanding the defendant to appear in lieu of a warrant.
D. If a person summoned fails to appear in response to the summons, a warrant for his or her arrest shall issue, and any person who willfully fails to appear in response to a summons is guilty of a misdemeanor; provided, however, any charges or warrant for failure to appear shall be dismissed if the person can show the court that the person was incarcerated or otherwise detained by law enforcement at the time of the failure to appear.
Added by Laws 1967, c. 250, § 1, emerg. eff. May 8, 1967. Amended by Laws 2021, c. 42, § 1, eff. Nov. 1, 2021.