Lafourche Parish Bench Warrants
Bench warrants in Lafourche Parish are issued by the 17th Judicial District Court in Thibodaux when defendants miss court dates or fail to comply with court-imposed conditions. Sheriff Craig Webre leads the Lafourche Parish Sheriff's Office, which handles the service and enforcement of bench warrants across the parish. Lafourche Parish stretches from Thibodaux southeast toward the Gulf of Mexico and covers a large geographic area. Residents who may have an outstanding bench warrant should contact the sheriff's office or the clerk of court to check their status and take steps toward resolution before an encounter with law enforcement results in arrest.
Lafourche Parish Quick Facts
Lafourche Parish Bench Warrant Search
The Lafourche Parish Sheriff's Office has a warrant portal on its website. You can search by name, race, or sex. The office is nationally accredited through CALEA and the American Correctional Association. The mailing address is P.O. Box 818, Thibodaux, LA 70302-0818. Phone numbers include (985) 449-4420 and (985) 532-2808. Sheriff Webre has been in office for eight terms and runs one of the more well-organized departments in south Louisiana.
The Lafourche Parish Sheriff's Office website provides access to the warrant portal and department information for bench warrant searches.
The LPSO site serves as the main online resource for warrant lookups and arrest information in Lafourche Parish.
Note that the Warrants Division page has been reported as unavailable at times. If the online portal is down, contact the sheriff's office directly by phone. Crime Stoppers Bayou Region is another way to submit tips: call 1-800-743-7433 or visit CrimeStoppersBR.org. For narcotics-related tips, contact Lt. Derek Champagne at (985) 532-4365 or derek-champagne@lpso.net. These are tip lines, not bench warrant search tools, but they can help if you have information about a wanted person.
Lafourche Parish Clerk of Court Records
The Lafourche Parish Clerk of Court, Hon. Annette M. Fontana, maintains all court records for the 17th JDC. The office is at 303 W. Third Street in Thibodaux. Phone is (985) 447-4841. Fax is (985) 447-5800. Email goes to clerk@lafourcheclerk.com. Clerk Fontana is a certified Louisiana Clerk and former felony prosecutor. The clerk's website offers public search portals for conveyance and mortgage records as well as civil and criminal records.
The Lafourche Parish Clerk of Court website offers public records search portals including bench warrant and criminal case information.
The clerk's website provides easy public search portals for customers to search civil and criminal records.
The records search page on the clerk's website lets you search for court records. Access fees include $50 per month for unlimited access, $20 for one day of unlimited access, or $550 per year. A single name search costs $20. Certified copies are $5 each. Photocopies run $1 per page under La. R.S. 44:32. The criminal docket number is (985) 447-5512. The civil docket line is (985) 447-5550.
The Lafourche Parish records search page provides online access to court records including bench warrant and criminal case filings.
Through this search portal, users can look up bench warrant records and other court filings for a fee.
How Bench Warrants Work in Lafourche Parish
The 17th Judicial District Court issues bench warrants under La. C.Cr.P. Art. 349.1. A judge signs the warrant when a defendant fails to appear. This is not the same as an arrest warrant under La. C.Cr.P. Art. 202. Bench warrants come from the judge's authority over the case. They direct law enforcement to find and arrest the person and bring them back to court.
La. C.Cr.P. Art. 205 states that warrants do not expire in Louisiana. A bench warrant from Lafourche Parish stays active until the person is arrested, turns themselves in, or the judge recalls it. There is no statute of limitations. La. C.Cr.P. Art. 203 lists the required contents of every warrant: the subject's name, the offense, the date of issuance, and the judge's signature. Bond information may also be included. Warrant records show the person's physical description, race, sex, and bail amount.
The 17th Judicial District Court website provides information about the court that handles bench warrant cases in Lafourche Parish.
The 17th JDC handles all bench warrant issuances and recall proceedings for Lafourche Parish.
Resolving Lafourche Parish Bench Warrants
Clearing a bench warrant in Lafourche Parish requires appearing before the 17th JDC judge who issued it. Hire an attorney to file a recall motion. Voluntary surrender is the preferred approach. Judges view it favorably when defendants take responsibility on their own. Waiting to be picked up on a warrant during a traffic stop means sitting in jail until a hearing can be arranged, which is always worse.
La. C.Cr.P. Art. 211.1 allows summons and release in certain misdemeanor situations. La. C.Cr.P. Art. 336 covers bail procedures when someone is arrested on a bench warrant. Bond amounts vary based on the charge and the judge's discretion. Some bench warrants allow posting bond without a hearing. Others require the defendant to appear before the judge first. Call the sheriff's office for specifics about your warrant.
Court records are public under La. R.S. 44:1. La. R.S. 44:31 guarantees inspection rights. La. R.S. 44:3 lists exemptions. La. C.Cr.P. Art. 162 covers search warrants separately. For bench warrant inquiries, the clerk's criminal docket at (985) 447-5512 is the best contact. The Clerk Connect system also provides multi-parish online access for Lafourche Parish record searches, giving you another way to check case status from home.
Nearby Parishes
Bench warrants issued in Lafourche Parish are enforceable statewide. Any law enforcement officer in Louisiana can serve them. These parishes share borders with Lafourche: