The Oneida County Sheriff’s Office Warrants Section’s primary responsibility is the arrest of persons for whom warrants have been issued.
A significant duty of the section is to receive, record, update, and administer the warrants and associated paperwork. The Warrants Section is a part of the Criminal Investigation Unit. Two Sergeants and three Investigators staff the Warrants Section. Warrants Investigators are plain clothes, armed, Deputy Sheriffs who have a minimum of two years of experience, and who have shown a self-motivated ability to locate and arrest wanted persons. A Warrants Investigator works day and evening shifts and is subject to callback at any time. Personnel assigned to the Section assist the Criminal Investigation Unit as necessary.
Warrants Investigators work closely with the US Marshals Service, the NY State Police Violent Felony Warrants Unit, and the Utica Police Warrants Unit. The Investigators also work with many local, state, and out-of-state police agencies. Investigators execute warrants for any requesting agency, and travel throughout the state and country to retrieve prisoners who have been arrested on Oneida County-issued warrants.
The Warrants Section closes over 700 Sheriff’s Office warrants yearly and maintains an active warrant list of about 700 wanted persons. The warrants originate from local courts, Oneida County Superior and Family Courts, and Oneida County Probation. The warrants are based on the violation, misdemeanor, or felony charges, and may be:
Warrant of Arrest: Issued for a person who has not yet been in court for the charge named in the warrant. (E.g., Police Officer has proof that John Doe committed a crime. Police officer asks the court to issue a warrant. John Doe’s first appearance in court for the charge is when he is brought before the court when arrested with the warrant.)
Bench Warrant: Issued for a person who has a court action pending related to the charge named in the warrant (E.g., John Doe has a criminal charge pending in court. John skips his next scheduled court appearance. The court issues a Bench Warrant.)
Superior Court Warrant: Issued by a Superior Court (County Court or Supreme Court) to secure the appearance of a defendant who has been indicted.
A List of Warrants that have been issued or updated in the last 30 days is available on this website. A list of All Active Warrants is also available; however, the full list contains over 700 entries and may take several minutes to load.