In the State of Florida, those who are arrested must go before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest in what is referred to as an advisory hearing or first appearance. These hearings usually include everyone who was arrested in the last 24-hours and can be done in person or by video conference. At this hearing, the judge must make several decisions.
PROBABLE CAUSE
First, the judge must decide whether the arresting officer had probable cause to make the arrest. The judge makes this decision based solely on the officer’s arrest affidavit. This arrest affidavit is a brief summation of why the officer made the arrest. It is not the entire police report, which is generated later and contains much more details regarding the arrest. If the judge finds that there is probable cause, he/she will move on to the next step. If NO probable cause is found, the judge can release the defendant or keep the defendant in custody and give the prosecutor a limited amount of time to amend the affidavit. In some cases, the officer simply did not have probable cause and made a bad arrest, but often it is a failure of the arresting officer to properly articulate his findings in the affidavit. When there is not probable cause, the judge will consider the severity of the accusations in deciding as to whether or not to immediately release the defendant.
BOND AMOUNT
If a judge finds, on the record, that probable cause is found in the arrest affidavit, the judge must then decide if a bond (also known as bail) needs to be set in the case. The theory behind issuing bonds to arrestees is that it will give the court assurance that the defendant will return to later court dates. The amount of the bond is determined by the judge and is based on different factors including the seriousness of the alleged crime committed, the criminal record of the defendant including the defendant’s history of showing up for court dates, the defendant’s local ties to the community, and the danger posed to the community if the defendant is released. This requires the judge to have access to a vast amount of information at a hearing that took place within 24 hours.
FACTORS CONSIDERED
Most of the information regarding the defendant is provided by a prosecutor, who is Florida is called an Assistant State Attorney (ASA). The ASA should have a criminal record prepared for each arrestee at the advisory hearing. The judge will often ask the ASA to recite the criminal record of each defendant when they are called up before the judge. If there is a victim in the case and they are present at the advisory hearing, the judge will entertain them by letting them speak on the record as to their position on the case. This could also be considered when the judge decides on a bond amount. It should also be noted that each circuit has created a uniform bond schedule to provide guidance to judges on bond amounts for certain alleged crimes.
ROR
A large portion of cases that come before judges at advisories are misdemeanor crimes such as DUI, petit theft, or possession of marijuana. If someone is arrested on a minor offense and has little to no criminal record, the judge will often issue an ROR, which stands for Release on own Recognizance. This means there is no bond required to pay, and the judge is trusting that the defendant will come back for further court proceedings.
The judge can also place the defendant on Supervised ROR. This act releases the defendant but requires them to check in with Pre-Trial Services. This is like a probation officer who you check in with regularly.
NO BOND or ZERO BOND
On the flip side of that coin, there are instances in which a judge may issue “no bond” or “zero bond.” This means that the defendant must sit in jail until the case is resolved, or a judge issues another order setting a bond. This happens when defendants are arrested for capital, life felonies or 2nd degree murder. Zero bond is also regularly assigned to those who have violated probation. Judges will make these alleged offenders sit in jail until a hearing is set before the judge who made the original sentence can hear an argument as to why a reasonable bond should be set.
RELEASE CONDITIONS
Judges have the power to set conditions when releasing a detainee. Even if a bond is established, the judge can dictate certain requirements or prohibit certain things while the defendant is out of jail and awaiting resolution of the case. For instance, if someone gets arrested for misdemeanor domestic battery, the judge may set a bond at $500 and as a condition of the release, the defendant is ordered to have no contact with the alleged victim of the battery. The judge may even require a GPS ankle monitor as a condition of that release. Or a person is arrested for a DUI and the judge ROR’s the suspect but prohibits them from consuming alcohol and orders them to wear an ankle monitor that can detect if someone has been drinking. Violations of these conditions mean the defendant goes back to jail and will likely receive “zero bond.”
BONDSMEN
Most bond amounts range from $500 to several thousand dollars. And when more serious charges are involved, judges will set bonds in the hundreds of thousands or even over a million dollars. When a defendant cannot afford to pay a bond, there are two choices: stay in jail until the case gets resolved or call a bondsman. A bondsman will allow you to pay about ten percent of your set bond amount, and they will cover the rest. But here’s the catch; since the bondsman is assuming the risk that you will show up at all court dates, the bondsman gets to keep your initial fee, even after the case is resolved. When you post the bond yourself or through friends or family, the clerk of court returns that money to you after you have appeared at all your required court dates. If you have court fines or fees, the court will use your bond money towards those court fees.
LAWYER-UP
Once a judge has found probable cause, has determined if a bond should be set, and has set a bond amount; the judge will ask the defendant if they have an attorney. If they do not have one, the judge will ask if they would like a public defender appointment. If the answer is yes, the judge may ask a few questions about your income and assets since you must qualify for a public defender. Even if the judge appoints a public defender, the defendant will eventually be required to complete a financial affidavit to prove eligibility.
If possible, it is advantageous to have a criminal defense attorney with you at your advisory hearing. When representation is present at the hearing, the judge will likely allow that attorney to speak on the defendant’s behalf. Otherwise, the judge will only hear from the State’s attorney who will be prosecuting the case. It is wise to have a criminal attorney’s contact information with you at all times so that you contact them immediately, and the attorney can attend your advisory hearing.
If you are looking for a criminal defense lawyer with the experience needed to tenaciously represent you when you have been arrested, call the law offices of Hendry & Parker, P.A. today serving Pinellas, Pasco & Hillsborough Counties.