1. a warrant issued by a court or magistrate directing a jailer to receive and hold a prisoner
Usage: legal

Examples

• The judge signed the mittimus ordering the defendant’s detention.
• The sheriff delivered the mittimus to the county jail.
• Without a proper mittimus, the jailer could not legally hold the suspect.
• The court clerk prepared the mittimus after the bail hearing.
• The defense attorney challenged the validity of the mittimus.