What should you do if you have a domestic violence warrant in Tennessee?

If the police are called and a police report is filed for domestic violence, you might be wanted on a domestic assault charge even if you left the scene. First, be sure to find out if you actually have an arrest warrant issued for you. Once you are sure that a domestic violence warrant has been issued for your arrest, you have two realistic options: 1) voluntarily surrender yourself to police custody with your domestic violence lawyer 2) be arrested by police at work, home, or any given time and place.

Either way, expect to wait in jail for at least 12 hours before you can post bond because all domestic violence charges in Tennessee come with a de facto “12-hour hold” upon arrest. This means you will remain in custody for 12 hours after your arrest regardless of a bond posting. With option one, however, there’s a decent chance your lawyer can have that mandatory 12-hour hold waived.

Arranging your surrender will probably be the best option because it puts you and your lawyer in the driver’s seat. While each case is different, we usually suggest this route for our clients because, more often than not, we are able to convince the court to waive the mandatory 12-hour hold and/or reduce the bond amount for our clients in conjunction with a surrender. Contact or call 615-873-5670 to find out what the best option is for your specific set of circumstances.