Policy Text
University of California, San Francisco
Police Department General Order s
5.3 Legal Process: Criminal Process
5.3.4 Attempted Legal Process Service (Revised: 2/6/25 )
A. Subpoenas/Court Orders
1. Officers who have attempted to serve a subpoena/court order will record the
attempt in the RMS and include the following information:
a. Address of attempted service
b. Date and time
c. Name of officer
d. Reason for non -service (e.g., not at home).
2. After a diligent attempt at service, the unserved subpoenas/court order will be
forwarded to the Court Liaison for return to the appropriate agency.
B. Prioritization of Warrant Service
It is the policy of the Police Department to attempt to serve all outstanding arrest
warrants without delay. Quick action on the part of law enforcement agencies in serving
outstanding warrants can significantly increase the likelihood of apprehension. The
priority of warrant service is as follows:
1. Felony Warrants : Because of the serious nature of the offense, all felony warrants
should be served as expeditiously as possi ble.
2. Misdemeanor Warrants : In the absence of any serviceable felony warrants,
misdemeanor warrants should be served, beginning with the most serious
misdemeanors.
3. Consideration should be given to Failure to Appear and Failure to Comply
warrants, as there is a greater likelihood that those who willfully fail to appear
will not remain in the area for long.