No one wants to find themselves in a situation where they get a call from a close loved one telling them they are behind bars. If this call comes from your husband, you may feel the responsibility of getting him the help he needs is resting squarely on your shoulders. If you have never had any prior experience with the criminal justice system, you may be confused about what steps you should take, and what steps you are allowed to take, to help your husband. Below, the experienced Salt Lake City criminal defense attorney at Overson & Bugden explains what will happen after your husband has been arrested and what you should do to ensure his rights are respected.
Paying for an Attorney for Someone Else in Salt Lake City
The first obvious step you may think to take when you find out your husband is behind bars is to find an experienced attorney to assist him through the process. You may be wondering, however, whether you are allowed to pay for a criminal defense attorney for your husband. The answer to this question is yes. Anyone is permitted to pay for a lawyer for anyone else, including a spouse. However, this does not mean you are entitled to all the information exchanged in conversations between your husband and the Murray criminal defense lawyer. Due to attorney-client privilege, these conversations will remain private, even if you are paying for the lawyer’s services.
The Bail Process in Salt Lake City
The first thing you will need to deal with is getting your husband out of jail. For some minor crimes and infractions, the police may simply choose to release him after booking with a summons to appear in court on his arraignment date. Most of the time, however, some sort of bail will need to be posted to get him out. Bail is a certain amount of money your husband, or someone like you working on his behalf, must post to get your husband released. If your husband fails to show up to any of his required court dates, this money will be forfeited.
A bail hearing will be held before a judge within 48 hours of your husband’s booking process being completed. At this hearing, the judge will make a determination about the appropriate amount of bail to set in this case. The main factor that goes into a judge’s bail decisions is something known as the Uniform Bail Schedule. This is a set of guidelines produced by the Utah Bail and Sentencing Commission regarding the standard amount of bail to be set for each type of crime. These guidelines take into account not only the type of crime alleged, but any previous criminal history your husband might have. This means that the schedule will suggest the judge set a higher bail for you husband if he has a criminal rap sheet and commits a burglary than if this burglary is his first offense.
Even with the bail schedule to guide them, judges retain discretion in the amount of bail they choose to impose. They may choose to deviate from the bail schedule if they find “extenuating circumstances” present. If you are a repeat offender or have committed a very serious felony, it is even within their discretion to grant no bail at all and require that you be detained until the underlying criminal matter is resolved. Experienced Salt Lake City bail hearing attorneys like those at Overson & Bugden understand how to craft a successful argument that your husband should be released with minimal bail by demonstrating that he is not a flight risk or a danger to the community.
How Can A Lawyer Assist My Husband with His Criminal Case in Salt Lake City?
After the bail hearing, there will be a formal arraignment of your husband, where the charges against him are read and he must plead either guilty or not guilty. A Taylorsville criminal defense attorney is almost certain to advise him to plead not guilty at this point. This will allow the attorney time to gather evidence, request discovery from the prosecution, and assess the strengths and weaknesses of the case against your husband.
Your attorney will also work with the prosecutor to try to negotiate a deal of some sort. If this is your husband’s first offense, he may be eligible for pre-trial diversion where, if he successfully completes the required programs, his case will be dropped. Other agreements can include a deal where your husband pleas to lesser charges or the prosecutor requests lesser charges at his sentencing in exchange for him giving up his right to trial.
If you are not satisfied with the deal offered to you, our skilled trial attorneys at Overson & Bugden are ready and able to take your case to trial. We understand how to craft a winning case and will work tirelessly to defend your husband against his charges. Our ultimate goal will be to get a verdict of not guilty, but, if your husband is found guilty, we will continue to work to make sure his sentence is as minimal as possible. We will collect evidence to show the judge that your husband is a decent member of the community and deserves to be shown leniency.
If Your Husband Has Been Arrested, Reach Out to Our Experienced Criminal Defense Attorneys Today
It can be incredibly stressful to feel the weight of the world on you when a loved one, such as your husband, calls you from jail. While you may be tempted to panic, keeping your cool can make the difference between his case being brought to a successful resolution and him facing serious penalties. The first thing you should do is to contact a compassionate, skilled criminal defense attorney like the team at Overson & Bugden. We know how to guide you and your husband through the process and to make sure no stone is left unturned in his defense. For a free consultation, call us today at (801) 758-2287.
