What Can I Expect If I Am Charged With A Federal Crime And I Bond Out?

If you bond out while being charged with a federal crime, then you are one of the lucky ones. Many clients and federal defendants are usually stuck in federal custody while they are awaiting a trial or plea on their charge. Typically, they are housed at the Bastrop Jail because there is no federal detention facility prior to trial. The federal government contracts with local counties, and currently, they are mostly using Bastrop. Therefore, they’ll be held at Bastrop until the trial. If you are not in federal custody, then you are out on bond. While you are out on bond, you are subject to certain conditions. The main conditions are don’t associate with people who violate the law, don’t violate the law yourself, report to a pre-trial services officer as they direct you, and perform a urinalysis or submit to drug testing to prove that you are not using any drugs or non-prescribed medication. If you follow the conditions, then you shouldn’t have a problem remaining out on bond.

However, if you were to violate any of the conditions, you can expect to be remanded to custody and remain in custody for the duration of your case. For example, if you submitted one positive drug test for marijuana, you can be taken into federal custody. Federal cases, however, move a lot more quickly than state cases due to the federal speedy trial act. The federal speedy trial act requires that if you are arrested on a federal case, you have to be indicted within 30 days. That means that the case has to go before a grand jury and be presented with secret testimony before the grand jury, and the grand jury has to make the decision that there is probable cause that you committed the offense.

If the grand jury makes the decision that there is probable cause that you committed the offense, they return a formal charging document known as an indictment. At that point, the case would be indicted, and you would be entitled to discovery on the case in order to prepare for trial, or in most circumstances, a plea, which is the eventual outcome of a federal case. Once the indictment is given, there is a 70-day clock until you would have a trial on your case. The trial can be delayed, especially by an agreement with the government. Oftentimes it is delayed depending on the complexity of the case, and the necessary preparations on behalf of the defendant.

With the agreement, federal judges do not usually object to an extension in most cases, but they do very strictly hold to the speedy trial act, and they move the case very quickly. After your case has been indicted, you should expect to have your lawyer receive discovery from the prosecutors and the U.S. Attorney’s office. You should then expect your lawyer to review the evidence and review it with you. Your lawyer will make a recommendation about whether or not they think that your conduct is culpable. Unfortunately, there are a number of different federal statutes that prescribe certain types of conduct. Also, the federal government typically does not bring cases that are weak in terms of either evidence or potential violations of constitutional rights.

If the case is weak, the federal government will not file it. Those cases typically go to the state level for similar conduct or similar charges. Basically, because of the weight of the evidence in a federal case, and because the evidence can typically be categorized under different statutes that make that conduct illegal, there is a lot of pressure to enter into a plea. Also, the federal sentencing guidelines may often have the conduct that you are charged with under a statue that may have a mandatory minimum amount. That may be something that can possibly be negotiated if you are working with a prosecutor, but it may not be something that you can get if you do not cooperate, talk to a prosecutor, and enter into a plea agreement.

If there is no plea agreement or no mandatory minimum, the defense would set the case for trial and prepare for a federal jury trial. As mentioned, that would be set within 70 days after indictment unless there was a delay based on a continuance from either side.

For more information on Aftermath Of Bonding Out On A Federal Case, a free initial consultation is your next best step. Get the information and legal answers you are seeking by calling (512) 478-9898 today.