Legal Question in Criminal Law in Nevada

Re: Justice Court Summons

It depends.

If you are the Defendant in the case (State of Nevada vs. YOU)- then a warrant will be issued for your arrest if you fail to appear. If you can't appear- you can hire a criminal defense attorney to appear on your behalf.

If you are a witness, (State of Nevada vs. someone else) the state has 2 options- if they can forward without you testimony (then nothing will happen to you) or if they can't and the case is important to the State- they can ask the Court for an Order to Show Cause or a Witness Warrant and get you to court to testify- voluntarily or under arrest if necessary. This is rarely used and reserved for cases in which the State wants to prosecute a defendant or where the State believes the witness is being intimidated

If you are the complaining witness and fail to appear at the trial or preliminary hearing, the case will most likely just be dismissed.