Answering Your Top 4 Questions About Arrests
You’ve heard about people getting arrested countless times through news stories and friends’ or family members’ experiences. However, your ideas about the process aren’t clear and are based mostly on legal TV shows. Here are the answers to your top questions about getting arrested.
- What Is Bail?
When people are arrested and formally charged, they are usually held on bail. This means that if the person pays a certain amount of money, he or she can leave prison until the trial. Sometimes, people cannot afford the price of bail, so they take out bail bonds. If you purchase Washington County bail bonds, you give a bail bond company a fee and the company agrees to pay the court the full cost of bail if you don’t come to your trial. Police stations only do not offer bail if the person is accused of a particularly serious crime such as first-degree murder.
- What Is a Charge?
A charge is a formal accusation of suspected criminal activity. Charges describe what the police think you have done and what laws you are accused of breaking. The police must charge suspects within 48 hours or release them without charge.
- What Are Miranda Rights?
Miranda rights are the rights that suspects have when they are questioned by the police. They include the right to remain silent and the right to avoid self-incrimination.
- What Is Custody?
In cases of criminal activity, being in custody refers to being held by the police. Suspects are kept in custody as they await charges and until their trials unless someone pays their bail.
Most people have a vague understanding of what being arrested means, but they don’t fully grasp these terms’ definitions. Now, you’re ready to discuss the legal and criminal justice systems with a more educated vocabulary.
