Research from Yasmeen Abdullah

A young lady who's a 2L at Richmond Law School who does research for me. The latest thing I had her check into for me is the possible punishments for not coming to court in Virginia.

There are two possible ways to get punished in Virginia if you don't come to court. The judge can issue a capias and punish you for contempt or you can get a new charge of failure to appear (which can be either a felony or misdemeanor). What I had her check into were the failure to appear charges and the various types of capiases (some of which weren't exactly on point).

Perhaps the most impressive part of the paper is the citation of Higginbotham. I think that it's a law that every Commonwealth Attorney and appellate court judge must cite this in a brief or opinion. Finding it before she even gets out of law school gives her a step up on everyone else.

What Happens If You Don't Come to Court