How Long a County Can Hold Someone Awaiting Extradition

Attorney Answer

The 30-day figure people repeat is real, but it applies to a fugitive held before a Governor's warrant issues — and if extradition was already waived, that is probably not the clock running on him. Before anything else, find out which piece of paper is holding him, because different papers carry different limits.

West Virginia's extradition provisions are at W. Va. Code § 62-14A-1 et seq. Section 62-14A-3 governs the Governor's warrant of arrest. Section 62-14A-4 governs what happens after arrest: if the prisoner or counsel states a desire to test the legality of the arrest, the judge shall fix a reasonable time within which to apply for a writ of habeas corpus, with notice to the prosecuting attorney and to the demanding state's agent. That same section provides that a person arrested as a fugitive before a Governor's warrant issues may be committed to a county or regional jail "for a time not exceeding 30 days," and if he is not arrested under a Governor's warrant by then, a judge or magistrate "may recommit him or her for a further period not to exceed 60 days." Those are the numbers — 30, then up to 60 more — and they attach to a pre-warrant fugitive commitment, not to every kind of hold.

On the parole angle, temper expectations. In Feathers v. Detrick, 175 W. Va. 628, 336 S.E.2d 922 (1985), the Supreme Court of Appeals held that extradition of a parole violator does not require a judicial determination of probable cause. Where extradition is sought for an offense that already resulted in conviction, the demanding state need only supply the record of conviction and a statement by its Governor that the accused has violated parole; the affidavits and showing of presence in the demanding state required when extradition rests on a mere accusation are not necessary. The petitioner in that case lost — the court affirmed the denial of habeas relief. Habeas is available to test the legality of the arrest, but it is unlikely to defeat a parole-violator hold.

On your power of attorney: a power of attorney is a civil instrument. It does not make you a party to his criminal case, it does not make you his lawyer, and it does not obligate the jail or the court to notify you of filings or transfer plans. That is frustrating and it is also the reality. The information reaches you through him or through his attorney.

What you can do

1. Find out the exact basis of the hold. Ask the regional jail records office and the magistrate clerk in the county of arrest whether he is held as a fugitive from justice, on a Governor's warrant, or on a parole detainer, and get the date of the commitment order. 2. Have him request court-appointed counsel in the extradition matter. Only he or his lawyer can file anything. That is the single step that unlocks everything else. 3. If he is held as a pre-warrant fugitive, have counsel track the 30-day limit and the 60-day recommitment under W. Va. Code § 62-14A-4 and raise it at the right moment. 4. If extradition was waived, call the demanding state's parole authority directly. In waived cases the delay is almost always transport scheduling on their end, and their parole board — not the West Virginia jail — controls the revocation timeline. 5. Have him add you to his approved phone and visitation list and sign a written release with his appointed attorney. That release, not the power of attorney, is what gets you information. 6. Do not rely on an officer's offhand comment that he "may be released soon." Get the commitment order date and the paper.

⏱ Time limits apply. W. Va. Code § 62-14A-4 sets a commitment of not more than 30 days for a fugitive arrested before a Governor's warrant, with recommitment of up to 60 further days. Which limit applies, and when it started, depends on the exact papers in his file and on whether extradition was waived — so get the commitment order rather than counting business days.