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Straight Talk About Georgia Criminal Law

What happens with an arrest?
 Most people are arrested at "the scene of the crime." The arresting officer must have probable cause that a crime was committed. Quite often, judges will sign an arrest warrant based solely on the word of the arresting officer that a person violated the law.

What is involved with getting out of jail?
Once a person has been booked in (usually very slowly because they believe that the longer that you stay in jail, the less you will want to come back), they usually have the right to try and get out of jail. The following are the only ways that a person can get out of jail:

(a) Hire a Bonding Company: Bonding companies are paid 10% of the face amount of the bond as their fee to get you out. They become responsible for the entire bond if you don't show up in court. Bonding companies will not post bond for a person they think may not show up in court (usually when a person is not living locally or has nothing to lose by not showing up in court).

(b) Post a Cash (or Credit Card) Bond: Some people are able to just give the full amount of the bond money in cash or by credit card. All money is refundable after the case is concluded, except for a "surcharge" , which the jailer gets to keep.

(c) Post a Property Bond: People can post the deed to their house as a bond. The person must have plenty of equity in their house and good credit. There may be other special rules that apply to this procedure.

(d) Own Recognizance Bond: Once a person has been in jail long enough, they are brought before a judge and if they pose no risk of flight and meet other requirements, then the judge may be nice enough to just let them out without posting any money.

What about probable cause hearings?
A probable cause hearing is only held to show that the officer had a reason to believe that a crime was committed. Most, if not almost all, cases are sent on to a higher court (this is called "binding a case over"). If probable cause for an arrest is lacking, the judge will dismiss the arrest warrant or case.