Procedure - Warrants

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Purpose
1.	Process of issuing a warrant
1.1	Warrant by chief executive or delegate
1.2	Warrant by parole board
1.3	Warrant by board for extradition purposes
1.4	Warrant by justice following contravention of community based order
2.	Forwarding a warrant to police or Police Information Centre (PIC)
2.1	Offender on parole order
2.2	Offender on community based order
2.3	Offender on community supervision
2.4	Prisoner in a corrective services facility
3.	Warrant number
4.	Issuing authority identifier
5.	Warrant register
6.	Schedule of warrants
7.	Withdrawing a warrant
8.	Executing a warrant

Purpose

To ensure the timely execution of all warrants issued for the purpose of apprehending an offender who has escaped from lawful custody, has been mistakenly discharged, is unlawfully at large or has breached a community based order.

1. Process of issuing a warrant

1.1 Warrant by chief executive or delegate

Refer Corrective Services Act 2006 s 202.

The chief executive or delegate may issue a warrant when an offender -

1. escapes from lawful custody;
2. has been mistakenly discharged before the offender was eligible to be discharged; or
3. remains in the community after any of the following orders, made in relation to the offender, have been suspended or cancelled -
   
   
   1. a leave of absence order;
   2. an interstate leave permit;
   3. a community work order;
   4. a conditional release order; or
   5. a parole release order.
   
   

For (i) - (iv), refer - Form 22 - Warrant by Authorised Person for Arrest of Prisoner Unlawfully at Large.

For (v) refer - Form 37 - Warrant by Chief Executive for Arrest and Conveyance of Prisoner to Prison.

1.2 Warrant by parole board

A parole board may issue a warrant when an offender remains in the community after a parole order made in relation to the offender has been suspended or cancelled by the board.

Refer - Form 39 - Warrant by Board for Arrest and Conveyance of Prisoner to Prison.

1.3 Warrant by board for extradition purposes

Under the provisions of the Service and Execution of Process Act 1992, only a warrant issued by a board may be executed interstate for the return of a parolee whose parole has been suspended or cancelled.

If a parole warrant has previously been issued by the chief executive or delegate and information is received that the offender has been located interstate, a board warrant must be obtained for extradition purposes. The warrant previously issued by the chief executive or delegate must be recalled (refer section 7 of this procedure).

1.4 Warrant by justice following contravention of community based order

A justice may issue a warrant on the complaint of an authorised person that an offender has breached a community based order or multiple community based orders.

Refer procedure - Contravention - Community Based Orders and appendices - Contravention - Fine Option Order; Contravention - Probation/Intensive Correction/Community Services Order; Contravention Reports for Courts; Complaint and Summons; Complaint and Warrant

2. Forwarding a warrant to police or Police Information Centre (PIC)

2.1 Offender on parole order

The warrant must, in the first instance, be faxed to the PIC on -

1. between 8:00am and 4:00pm - 3364 6404;
2. between 4:00pm and 8:00am - 3236 1694.

The original warrant and the Warrant Schedule, with a notation that the warrant has previously been faxed, must then be mailed to -

Officer in Charge
Police Information Centre
Queensland Police Service
GPO Box 1440
BRISBANE QLD 4001

Refer administrative form - Warrant Letter to Police Information Centre

2.2 Offender on community based order

The original warrant and the Warrant Schedule must not be faxed and must be mailed to the Police Information Centre at the address shown in section 2.1.

2.3 Offender on community supervision

If the location of the offender is known and local police have agreed to execute the warrant, the warrant must be forwarded to the local police (by arrangement, local police may accept a facsimile copy of a warrant in the first instance). In this situation it is not necessary to forward the warrant and Warrant Schedule to the PIC however, if a facsimile is sent, the original warrant must subsequently be sent to the local police with a notation that it has previously been faxed.

Action taken must be recorded on the offender's file.

2.4 Prisoner in a corrective services facility

A copy of the warrant must be forwarded (by email) to the Officer in Charge, Corrective Services Investigation Unit for information. To avoid the possibility of a warrant being executed twice the copy must be clearly marked COPY ONLY.

3. Warrant number

A warrant issued by the chief executive or delegate or a parole board must be identified, in the top right hand corner, with a warrant number that is unique to the issuing authority.

The warrant number consists of the issuing authority identifier/consecutive number/year of issue. (For example QPB/03/06 identifies the third warrant issued by the Queensland Parole Board in 2006).

4. Issuing authority identifier

Refer appendix - Issuing Authority Identifier

5. Warrant register

To ensure that a warrant is identified by a consecutive number, a register must be kept for each identifier showing the following details -

1. warrant number;
2. offender's name;
3. date of issue;
4. warrant type;
5. expiry date (if applicable);
6. Act and section number; and
7. PIC Label/Number.

Refer administrative form - Warrant Register

For warrants forwarded to the PIC, a PIC Label (bar code) will be returned as a receipt when the warrant has been registered on the Queensland Police POLARIS computer system. The label must be affixed to the Warrant Register against the warrant details.

6. Schedule of warrants

A Schedule of Warrants must accompany warrants forwarded to the PIC. The schedule may contain details of more than one warrant issued at the same time.

Refer administrative form - Schedule of Warrants to Police Information Officer

7. Withdrawing a warrant

If, prior to its execution, a warrant is to be withdrawn, for example, pursuant to s 203 of the Corrective Services Act 2006, a letter must be forwarded to the Officer in Charge of the PIC providing details of the -

1. Warrant number;
2. offender's name;
3. date of issue;
4. issuing authority;
5. reason for withdrawal; and
6. details of fresh Warrant (if issued).

Refer administrative form - Warrant Recall

8. Executing a warrant

A corrective services officer, who locates a person reasonably believed to be the person named in a warrant, must, before attempting to execute the warrant, take all reasonable steps to ensure that -

1. the person is the person named in the warrant;
2. the warrant has not previously been executed; and
3. the warrant is not cancelled, expired or defective.

When a warrant has been executed the back of the warrant must be endorsed with -

1. the date and time of execution of the warrant;
2. the name of the person on whom the warrant was executed;
3. if supplied, the name of the occupier of the place where the warrant was executed; and
4. the name, position and signature of the officer executing the warrant.

The warrant must accompany the person on whom it was executed to the corrective services facility or watch house.

While a corrective services officer has the authority under CSA s 348 to execute a court issued warrant, he/she is not required to do so. It is preferable that police execute a warrant.

F P Rockett
Director-General

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