3.8Persons Who May Issue Arrest Warrants or Summonses

A judge or district court magistrate may issue arrest warrants or summonses for the apprehension of persons charged with felony, misdemeanor, or ordinance violations. MCL 764.1. See also MCL 600.8511(e), which grants a district court magistrate jurisdiction “[t]o issue warrants for the arrest of a person upon the written authorization of the prosecuting or municipal attorney[.]”¹ No provision of MCL 761.1 allows a probate judge to issue an arrest warrant.

Although district court “magistrates perform limited judicial functions,” they are not judges for purposes of Const 1963, art 6, § 19 (requiring “judges of courts” to be licensed attorneys); however, a nonattorney magistrate may issue an arrest warrant. People v Ferrigan, 103 Mich App 214, 219 (1981). Additionally, it does not violate the Fourth Amendment for a nonattorney magistrate to issue a warrant. US Const, Am IV.; Shadwick v City of Tampa, 407 US 345, 350-353 (1972). In Shadwick, the United States Supreme Court established two necessary prerequisites that a magistrate must possess: (1) he or she must be neutral and detached,² and (2) he or she must be capable of determining whether probable cause exists for the requested arrest. The Court concluded that there is no reason that a nonattorney could not meet these prerequisites. Id. at 352-353.

A district court magistrate, like a judge, is also authorized to issue an arrest warrant or summons “by any electronic or electromagnetic means of communication from any location in this state,” if certain conditions are met. MCL 764.1(3); see also MCL 764.1(4)-(5).