Every missed court date comes at a high cost – for courts, law enforcement, and individuals. Oftentimes, people miss court despite having a genuine desire to attend, simply because they forget or struggle to plan for their court date. Reminders solve this problem.

The resources below provide step-by-step guidance for courts to create reminder programs that are grounded in evidence and operational best practices. Reminders help people show up for court and enable courts to operate more efficiently.

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Full Guide

This guide breaks down the fundamentals of building a successful reminder program into achievable steps, providing proven strategies for content and timing, system options for creating and sending reminders, and technology platforms and their basic costs.

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Checklist

A quick-reference checklist for building out effective court reminder programs grounded in evidence, operational best practices, and the science of human behavior.

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Executive Summary

A brief summary of our complete guide, equipping readers with everything they need to create a reminder program that’s feasible to implement, powerful in its impact, and reaps rewards for courts and their partners.

What people are saying about court reminders

Chief Judge Jeffrey R. Pilkington

First Judicial District, Colorado

"Following the introduction of text messaging reminders, the appearance rates for high-risk defendants have improved. Among our highest risk pretrial defendants who received text message reminders, appearance rates have increased by 15%.”

Judge Courtney Wachal

Kansas City Municipal Court, Missouri

"It's easy for judges to issue warrants but their consequences can devastate people's lives.
Making courts more accessible through text reminders allows the Court to resolve more
cases by increasing appearances and also reduces the burden on people who are already
facing significant challenges. It's a win-win.”

State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle

Miami-Dade County, Florida

"We get and rely on text reminders for everything from school to a dentist appointment.
Court attendance is critical to the justice process. When defendants forget to appear,
warrants are issued. When victims and witnesses fail to appear, cases get dismissed.
Supplementing current notification methods with text reminders is a no brainer.”

President Shawn Laughlin

American Jail Association

"Thousands of warrants are needlessly issued every year, creating additional strains
on an already strained corrections system. Using readily available technology to send
court reminders can play a critical role in breaking the preventable cycle of re-arrest,
incarceration and recidivism.”

Past President Louis Dekmar

International Association of Chiefs of Police, Chief of Police (Ret.), LaGrange, Georgia

"When a person has a warrant solely because they forgot about their court date, a police
officer's simple traffic stop becomes much more serious, complicated, and demanding
than it needs to be. When reminders prevent these warrants, reminders help police."

Chief Deputy Executive Officer Kelly Sullivan

Sacramento County Superior Court, California

"Since implementing changes to court date notifications and reminders, we have seen
a significant reduction in missed appearances and last-minute rescheduling. Our team
spends far less time on failures to appear, and case processing has become much more
efficient. Court users appreciate the changes, and our overall compliance rates have
significantly improved."

Director James M. Retallick

Weber Public Defender Group, Weber County, Utah

"In my experience, the inherent stress of being a justice involved individual often obscures
the specific court date set. Court date reminders have proven critically helpful to these
people—and everyone else who would be directly or indirectly impacted by their missed
court appearance.”

Judge Ryan Hope

State Court Athens-Clarke County, Georgia

"As a judge, I want people to get to court and avoid warrants and suspended licenses.
Let's stop people from missing court dates in the first place because that is better for the
court and the community. If my mechanic can send a message about my upcoming oil
change, it's crazy for a court not to send a message about a court date, especially when
the consequences are so serious."

Sheriff Steven W. Tompkins

Suffolk County, Massachusetts

"Our mission as sheriffs is to protect public safety, maintain secure facilities, and help
reduce recidivism. Chasing and processing nonappearance warrants wastes valued
resources better spent on real public safety priorities. Reminder programs are a powerful
tool that keep eligible people where they belong pretrial—on the street, instead of
unnecessarily clogging our jails.”

Commissioner Adrian Garcia

Harris County, Texas

"In Harris County, reminders have significantly increased court appearance rates. As a
result, our criminal courts, law enforcement, and jails dedicate more focus on serious
offenses—and taxpayers get the break they deserve.”

Want to talk about what a reminder program could look like for your court?

Reach out to our team at unwarranted@ideas42.org.

Learn more about (Un)warranted