It can be an emotional and stressful experience when you’re arrested. Not only do you find yourself in unfamiliar and intimidating surroundings, but you’re also dealing with new decisions on top of everything. It is all quite daunting. Although everyone’s situation is different, the basic process is the same. There are some important considerations when deciding whether to handle the risks of staying in jail or bond out to await your hearing.
After the arrest, one of the first steps is a bail hearing, where a judge will set your bail if you are eligible. When the judge sets the bail, it’s up to you to decide what to do. You can choose to pay the full bail and go home until the next step, not pay and stay in jail until your hearing, or get a bail bondsman. So, what risks and issues to consider about remaining in jail until your hearing?
What Happens to Your Personal Life While In Jail?
Preparing yourself for changes in your personal life following an arrest is best. If you choose to stay in jail to await your hearing, you will have to consider the different aspects of your life that will be affected. Everything from your job to your family to bills will need to be dealt with while you sit in jail. It’s also worth considering the possibility of incriminating yourself while in jail. Let’s look at each of these a little closer.
Who Will Care for Your Children?
One of the most critical worries if you’re a parent is who will care for your children. You are still expected to take care of your children if you are arrested. So, sitting in a jail cell while awaiting a hearing may be impossible if you don’t have someone to watch your children. Even if you don’t have children, you may have pets or other people you care for daily. You must consider what they will do if you stay in jail until your hearing. The worst case scenario is your children will end up in DCF custody living in a foster home if you do not have a friend or family member available to take care of them while you are locked up and awaiting your court hearing.
Will You Lose Your Job?
Most people don’t plan out their arrests, depending on when the arrest happens. It may affect your job. Waiting in jail for your hearing can cause you to miss work, sometimes without the ability to give your employer an explanation. This could put your job at risk. And when you have a growing number of legal fees and other fees, you’ll need income.
How Will You Pay Your Bills?
You will also need to consider those bills that will continue piling up in your mailbox. Just because your life has changed with an arrest doesn’t mean the world stops. Your bills will keep arriving, as will the expectation that they’ll be paid on time. It’s important to remember all of your regular monthly responsibilities, so you can take care of everything without getting late fees or other penalties. If you wait for your hearing in jail, you likely won’t have the necessary access to take care of bills.
Could You Accidentally Incriminate Yourself?
Besides your everyday life responsibilities, you also need to consider your current situation. Staying in jail exposes you to more opportunities for self-incrimination. In a jail cell, where you are constantly being monitored, you and your words are fully exposed. Even if you are innocent of being accused, somebody could still overhear you and use your words against you. Jail limits your ability to speak freely and puts you at a much higher risk of incriminating yourself before you can plead your case with a judge.
Staying in Jail to Await Trial is a Risk – Are You Willing to Take It?
There are many risks with staying in jail to await your hearing, and there is a lot to consider when choosing to stay or bond out. If you have been arrested and need financial help to get out so you can wait for your hearing, that’s where a professional bondsman, like Frank Chavez Bail Bonds in Palm Beach County, can come in to assist. We understand your situation and can help you or your loved one post bail so you can experience minimal disruption to your life as you await your hearing.