Criminal Procedures in
Utah - Jail Booking and Release
A
person charged with a crime in Utah is often booked into jail,
even before formal charges are filed with the court. In most cases, the
defendant is entitled to a reasonable bail amount. An experienced Utah
criminal defense attorney can help you explore other options for release from jail.
Contact us today to schedule an initial consultation with Stephen Howard.
Jail Booking
A
person charged with a crime in Utah will usually be required to go
through a formal jail booking process. Often, this booking process
occurs when the person is arrested prior to the filing of formal
criminal charges. But in cases where a summons is issued without a
prior arrest on the case, a person may still be instructed by the court
to report to the jail to go through a "book and release" process. The
formal booking process allows the court to assign an OTN (offense
tracking number) to identify the person charged as the defendant. In
some courts, the judge may allow the person to be fingerprinted by
court bailiffs or a local police department rather than go through a
formal jail booking.
"Reasonable Bail"
Constitutional protections require that a defendant, in most cases, be allowed a "reasonable" bail amount. When determining a
bail
amount, a court is legally required to consider what is reasonably
necessary to ensure the defendant's appearance in court, to ensure the
integrity of the court process, to prevent direct or indirect contact
with the victim or witnesses, and to ensure the public safety.
There
are legal exceptions, when a court may deny bail, and may hold a
defendant in custody without any possibility of posting bail. These
exceptions include: charges for a capital felony (aggravated murder);
"felony on felony" cases (when a defendant is accused of committing a
new felony crime while on felony probation or parole or while awaiting
trial on an earlier felony charge); and any felony charge where there
is clear and convincing evidence that, if released on bail, the
defendant would pose a substantial danger to another person or is
likely to flee the jurisdiction.
After an initial bail
amount is set by a court, a defendant may request a bail hearing (bond
hearing) to request a lower bail amount. To convince a judge to lower
the bail amount, it is helpful to present information demonstrating
that the defendant is not a flight risk and is not a threat to anyone
in the community. It can also be helpful if the defendant can
demonstrate that substantial hardships will be suffered by the
defendant or others if the court does not lower bail.
Cash Bail
In
some cases, a judge may order a "cash-only" bail. But whether the bail
is set as cash-only or bondable, a defendant always has the option of
posting a cash bail. The biggest advantage to posting a cash bail is
that the bail amount posted is fully refundable, assuming that the
defendant appears at all required court appearances. If a defendant
fails to appear, the bail may be forfeited. Money paid to a bail bond
company is not refundable. (Note that in most circumstances, bail can
be posted by credit card and still be considered a "cash" bail.)
Bail Bonds Companies in Utah
If
the bail amount is higher than a defendant can post in cash, the
defendant may have the option of having a bail bond posted through one
of Utah's many bail bond companies. By statute, a bail bond company is
required to charge at least 10% of the cash bail amount, plus
administrative and processing fees. Money paid to a
bail bond company will normally be non-refundable, even if the defendant appears at all required court appearances.
Own Recognizance ("OR") Release
In
rare cases, a judge may agree to allow a person to be released from
jail without posting bail and without supervision. In order to
obtain an "
own recognizance"
release, a judge must be convinced that the defendant is not a flight
risk and is not a threat to the community. Even then, most judges will
require more before seriously considering an OR release.
Pretrial Services Release (Salt Lake County Only)
A person booked in the
Salt Lake County Jail may be released before
seeing a judge and without posting bail or bond, if
Salt Lake County
Pretrial Services supervises the release. A person released
under the supervision of Pretrial Services will be required to check in
regularly with the agency, may be required to submit to testing for
drug or alcohol use, may be required to participate in counseling
groups for substance abuse or other appropriate issues, and other
conditions deemed appropriate.
Next: Felony Court Procedures or
Misdemeanor Court
Procedures
Previous: Arrest / Citation /
Summons
Main: Outline of
Utah Criminal Case Processes
Choosing a Utah Criminal Defense Attorney in
Salt Lake
If you have been charged with a crime in Utah, the best step you can take is to hire an experienced
criminal defense attorney. Experienced representation can be critical to ensuring that your rights are protected.
Based in Salt Lake City, criminal defense lawyer Stephen Howard has extensive
experience defending criminal cases in Utah ranging from murder to DUI, and from white collar crimes to serious felony
drug charges. His
track record
includes not guilty verdicts, dismissals, and appellate reversals in
cases including kidnapping, aggravated robbery, burglary, forgery,
theft, drug charges, DUI, white collar crime, and many more.
Contact us today to
arrange for an initial consultation with Mr. Howard. See what an experienced attorney can do for you.