Art. 7.01 SHALL ISSUE WARRANT

If someone swears under oath that a crime is about to happen to them, to someone else, or to their property, the magistrate has to act right away. The same is true if someone reports that another person has threatened to commit a crime. Once this sworn statement is made, the magistrate must issue a warrant to arrest the person accused of making the threat or planning the crime.

This rule does not give the magistrate a choice. The word "shall" means action is required, not optional. As soon as the sworn report comes in, the magistrate must issue the warrant so the accused person can be brought to court, either before that same magistrate or another one named in the warrant.

For regular people, this means the legal system is set up to respond quickly when someone reports a real threat. If you swear out a complaint saying someone threatened you or is about to commit a crime, the law requires the magistrate to take immediate steps to have that person arrested and brought before a judge.