The first thing that is going to happen after someone has been arrested is that they will be taken to either the city or county jail. They will be booked, processed, fingerprinted, and photographed. Their bail will initially be set, and they will be afforded the opportunity to call a bondsman. If a person is able to get somebody to bring money to the jail, then they could potentially get bonded out fairly quickly. However, if the arrest is for domestic violence, there is a 72-hour period in which they can be held.
What Are My Rights Once I Have Been Arrested?
There are two main rights that a person has after being arrested: the right to remain silent and the right to have an attorney. The right to have an attorney is the stronger right, so I recommend a person assert that right immediately. The reason it is stronger is because once a person requests to have an attorney present, the questioning has to stop and law enforcement cannot attempt to re-question the person without an attorney present. With the right to remain silent, law enforcement can attempt to re-question the person even after that right has been exercised. It is important to note that when exercising the right to remain silent, you must do so affirmatively, for example, by stating, “I am going to exercise my right to remain silent.” It is not enough to simply not talk.
Will I Be Arraigned Before I Am Released From Jail?
You could possibly be arraigned before you are released from jail. It depends on how long you are in jail. Inmates are given priority for arraignment, so if someone gets out of jail fairly quickly, then they may not be arraigned for another couple of days, weeks, months, or maybe even a years. It depends on that county’s caseload.
When Can I Contact An Attorney After Getting Arrested?
You should attempt to contact an attorney as soon as possible while you are in jail, but it’s probably going to be challenging. If you have an attorney’s number with you, then you can use the jail’s telephone system to contact that attorney. If a defendant knows people on the outside that they can call, then those people can contact an attorney on the defendant’s behalf. It is important to get an attorney as quickly as possible so that the attorney can begin collecting evidence, talking to witnesses, and building your defense. The attorney can also talk to prosecutors and try to head off charges before they are filed.
Some evidence, such as video, is perishable. This means that if a defendant waits a month or two before requesting dash cam or body cam video, then that video may have already been recorded over and is gone forever.
Can I Talk To An Attorney Prior To Making A Decision On A Chemical Test In A DUI Case?
In a DUI arrest, law enforcement will not allow a person to contact an attorney prior to taking a breath or a blood test. Part of the statement that an officer reads to the arrestee specifically states that they are not allowed to contact an attorney for advice on taking a test.
Can I Drive When I Get Out Of Jail After A DUI Arrest?
The ability to drive after a DUI arrest will depend on several things. Primarily, it depends on whether or not a request for a hearing with DPS was submitted within 15 days of the arrest. If no request for a hearing was made and the defendant was released less than or equal to 30 days after the arrest, then the defendant can drive—but only up until that 30th day. If more than 30 days have passed and no request was made, then the defendant’s license will be suspended and the defendant will not have permission to drive.
Miranda Rights
The Miranda case holds that when a subject is questioned in custody by the police, what that person says to the police will be admissible against them only if he has received the Miranda warning. There are several things that need to be looked at to determine if Miranda applies, and those three things are whether or not somebody was in custody, how the questioning was executed, and whether the person doing the questioning has the authority to do so.
Custody is usually the biggest question. Whether or not somebody is in custody is looked at using a “reasonable person” standard. You want to ask if a reasonable person looking at the situation would believe that they were in custody by the police. It is a spectrum. So if arrested and handcuffed at the police station, that person would be considered to be in custody. But then there is that gray areas as well. If you are in the police car but not cuffed, then that makes it less likely to believe that you are in custody. But if you’re in the police car and you are cuffed, are you considered to be in custody then? When a “reasonable person” believes that they’re no longer free to leave, then they would be considered to be in custody.
The second requirement of Miranda is that the confession comes as a result of questioning. Succinctly, if you volunteer something then that’s not considered questioning and your statements can be held against you.
The third requirement is that law enforcement authorities have to be the ones doing the questioning. So, if a private citizen acting independently of law enforcement detains somebody and questions him, then anything resulting from the confession is not covered by Miranda.
If you were not read your Miranda rights then does not necessarily mean what you say cannot be held against you. What you say can still be held against you even though you were not read your Miranda rights. It depends on the situation and those three requirements with custody being the most ambiguous of all of them.
How Bail Works in Oklahoma
There are several different options for bail in Oklahoma. In most counties, bail is set by a schedule. If you’re accused of committing a certain crime, then there is a dollar amount associated with that crime, and as soon as you are arraigned then you’ll be told the bail amount. Although it’s set by a schedule, that doesn’t necessarily mean that is what the bail has to stay at. If you feel bail is set too high, then your attorney can certainly put in a motion for a bond reduction. The court looks at various requirements to determine what the bail should be set at. The primary purpose of bail is to ensure that the defendant appears before the court.
The bail will be set at that amount, and you don’t always have to pay the entire amount. What people usually do is have a bondsman. The going rate generally for bondsmen in Oklahoma is ten percent. You will pay the bondsman ten percent of what the bail is set at, and then they’ll post your bond. You will be able to get out, but you don’t receive that ten percent back.
However, if you have that amount of cash then you can post bond yourself. At some point, you’ll be able to get that back once everything is complete and the court has been assured that you are going to show up for court.
There is another option, which is the personal recognizance bond. Your attorney can go in and ask that a PR bond be set for you, which means that there is no amount that you have to pay. The court will do this because they feel very confident that you’ll be able to show up for your court appearances even though you won’t lose any money if you don’t show up for your court appearance. Often, having an attorney goes a long way in being able to secure a PR bond. It is also called an OR bond, or own recognizance bond.
What Happens after Someone is Released on Bail?
Once you get out of jail and somebody posts the bond for you or you are out on your own recognizance, then what is next is usually an arraignment. That will usually happen within a couple of weeks after being arrested, and you will be notified somehow. You will either be told when you are arrested to show up on a certain day, or days and times, or when you are released you will be told when and where to show up for an arraignment. You may also receive a notice in the mail. During the arraignment you’ll be standing in front of a judge, and that is when the judge reads the official charging document to you, which is called the information. That is where you’re officially charged with that crime. The information says that the defendant on this certain day in this certain county committed this certain crime.
That’s what the state will ultimately have to prove beyond a reasonable doubt, if it gets to that stage. You’ll receive the information, and then you will also receive a court date which will be about a month out. What type of appearance you will have to make next depends on whether or not it is a felony or a misdemeanor. Misdemeanors go on a disposition docket that you may or may not have to attend. That’s something that your attorney will have to coordinate. If you’re charged with a felony then you will have a preliminary hearing conference date. That’s where you must or may have to show up—depending on the county. Your attorney will use that time to talk with prosecutors, negotiate and advocate for you. From there, the next appearances will probably be about a month or two from that appearance.