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CRIMINAL DEFENCE LAW

THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM IN CANADA

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BAIL or JAIL?

What to expect

Courts Deny Bail More Often Than

They Grant It.

The courts are afraid of being blamed for releasing someone who might go on a rampage the next day, so people who should be released, are jailed pending trial.

Bail Hearing

If you are not released after your arrest, you are entitled to a bail hearing within 24 hours of your arrest and detention.

 

You are constitutionally guaranteed reasonable bail. This does not mean that every person will be released. Most are not.

 

A Justice of the Peace decides whether or not you will be released or held in jail until your trial.

 

Recently, on a Christmas day, a London Ontario JP denied bail to 25 out of 28 cases brought before her. That is just wrong.

 

At the bail hearing the crown must show why you should be detained in custody. Usually the crown simply has to claim they are opposed to bail for the courts to deny you bail.

 

More and more often, the accused person must show why s/he should be released.

Courts prefer to deny bail  Here is what can you do?

Your Bail Hearing and Appeal:  What to Expect.

You Will Probably NOT Get Bail in Canadian Courts

Bail Is Denied More Often Than Not. You will probably not get bail You are constitutionally guaranteed reasonable bail. This does not mean that
There are ways to fight a bail denial but you will have to do it from jail So you need a criminal lawyer

KNOW THIS

If you are denied bail, you will probably be in jail for months waiting for your trial.

You will probably lose your job. You may lose your house. Your good name and reputation will be ruined because people will find out you are in jail. They don't care if you are not guilty. You are in jail. There must be a reason.

Many innocent people end up pleading guilty to get out of jail rather than wait and wait for a trial.

False convictions are just as bad for your reputation as real convictions.

 

The factors to be considered at a bail hearing are:

Whether the accused is likely to flee or attend court

Will the accused comply with conditions imposed by the court

Whether the accused person is likely to re-offend

Sureties

A surety is a person who will act as a supervisor and ensure that the accused person attends court, does not breach the conditions of release and does not re-offend.

A surety cannot have a criminal record, must be over 18 years old, be able to supervise the accused on a day to day basis, understand the conditions the court might impose on you, and arrive at court on time.

If Bail is Denied

Click here Bail Denied. Your rights are being violated

 

Jail conditions can be brutal. Jails are dangerous.

Jails are a danger to your health.

Denial of bail is devastating, resulting in your being held in jail for months, or even years, awaiting trial.

Because pretrial detention can often exceed the sentence imposed if you are found guilty at trial, many innocent people plead guilty just to get out of jail with "time served." That is not justice. It is expediency at its worst.

"Two for One" credit is supposed to compensate for dead time in jail pending trial. Harper changed that, but courts do grant credit for time spent awaiting trial, but the amount of credit varies from judge to judge and court to court.

Varying Bail Conditions

Upon release, you may discover that complying with all the terms of release is impossible. A curfew, for example, for a shift worker may cost him or her their job.

You can seek to vary your bail conditions.

Changing your bail conditions can be very slow and very expensive.

Once the conditions of the bail are imposed by a Justice of the Peace the crown must consent to the bail conditions being varied, as must the surety. If the crown will not consent to the variation of bail conditions, then the only alternative is to bring an application for bail variation in the Superior Court.

Breach of Bail Conditions:

If you breach a condition of bail and the surety knows, but does not inform the police, or if the surety fails to supervise the accused in terms of court attendances and maintaining the bail conditions, the crown may make application to the court to obtain the money posted for bail.

Funds do not automatically default to the crown. The crown must show that the surety knew of a breach of the bail terms and did not report it, or did not properly supervise

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