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Conditions of Release on Criminal Charges Explained by a Criminal Attorney

junctown | Jun 7, 2010 |

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Being charged with a crime is a scary thing, particularly if you've never been in trouble before. But, getting charged with the crime is just the beginning. There are numerous hurdles that must be crossed before emerging on the other side a free person. The first of those is called conditions of release.

Conditions of release are, as the name implies, the conditions a judge would put on your release from custody. Conditions of release are generally set at your arraignment, which is the first court appearance you will have. At arraignment you are formally informed of the charges against you, are informed of your Constitutional rights (to a jury trial, to an attorney, to confront witnesses against you, to call witnesses on your behalf, and to not testify if you don't want to) and then conditions of release are set.

If you have been accused of a minor crime, then the conditions of release will likely be pretty minimal. Often they are to not commit any other violations of the law (i.e. stay out of trouble). But, if the crime is more serious, or is perceived to be more serious by the court, the prosecutor can ask for stricter conditions. This is why it is important to have a criminal attorney with you at the first hearing - you never really know what the prosecutor is going to ask for.

The good news about conditions of release, though, is that they can only be made strict under very specific circumstances. The court has to find that one of two things exist to implement strict conditions of release; either that you are a threat to the public; or that there is a risk you won't show back up to court. For most people, no evidence exists that either of those two conditions is present. That's good, and most criminal lawyers will point this out to the court and argue you should just be let go on your personal recognizance (without any conditions).

In the end, if you are charged with a crime, you obviously want the least restrictive release as possible. Restrictions can include things like electronic home monitoring, no contact with the alleged victims, no consumption of alcohol, and using an interlock ignition device if driving. It's not fair that you be punished before your case is even decided, so do what's right, hire a criminal attorney as soon as you find yourself in trouble, and let them know why you should not have any strict conditions of release.