A magistrate is an officer having power to issue a warrant for the arrest of a person charged with the commission of a crime.

The following persons are magistrates:

(1) The justices of the supreme court.

(2) The judges of the court of appeals.

(3) The superior judges, and district judges.

(4) All municipal officers authorized to exercise the powers and perform the duties of district judges.

Intent—1987 c 202: See note following RCW 2.04.190.

Any district or municipal court judge, in the county in which the offense is alleged to have occurred, may issue a search warrant for any person or evidence located anywhere within the state. If the jurisdiction of a district or municipal court encompasses all or part of more than one county, a judge for that district or municipal court may issue a search warrant for any person or evidence located anywhere within the state as long as the county in which the offense is alleged to have occurred is one of the counties encompassed within that court's jurisdiction.

Finding—Intent—2014 c 93: "The legislature finds that recent decisions of the United States supreme court and the Washington state supreme court require law enforcement to obtain the review of a neutral and disinterested magistrate and the issuance of a search warrant more frequently before proceeding with a criminal investigation. The legislature intends to accommodate this requirement by creating effective and timely access to magistrates for purposes of reviewing search warrant applications across the state of Washington. This act does not change the legal standards for issuing a search warrant or the legal standards for review of an issued search warrant." [ 2014 c 93 § 1.]