Loved One Arrested? Take These 5 Steps

Many people get arrested every day for big or small crimes they commit. Sometimes, they are arrested on false grounds as well. However, witnessing someone you love under arrest can be numbing. The thought of having to deal with all the law officials and court proceedings can be scary.

Initially, the information you receive through the phone call from your loved one will be extremely limited. Even with such few details, you must not give up hope as there are steps that, if followed, can help you navigate through this extremely stressful time with ease.

1. Do not panic

When a loved one gets arrested, you’ll learn about the same as the arrested person will call you and inform you. It is extremely important to not panic and stay as calm as possible. Make sure you inform your loved one to not tell you anything incriminating because whatever they say will be monitored and used against them in the court of law later.

While arresting the police officer will subject the person to Miranda warning, therefore, the best thing for them to do is to remain silent. Keep the phone call short and simple and immediately step in to help your loved one out through the following ways. If you know just the basic details, you will be able to do a prison search using an online tool, to get all the other contact details you need.

2. Understand the grounds of arrest

The next most important thing to do is to contact the office of the District Attorney to find out the details of the arrest of your loved one. Inquire about all the necessary details regarding the arrest and on what ground he/she was arrested.

Ask them when and where the arrest happened and if they had any vehicle with them at the time of arrest, ask whether the bike or car has been impounded.

3. Find out the arraignment details

Next, gather information about the arraignment date and time to know when the arrest charges will be read out for them to plead guilty or not guilty in front of the court of law to facilitate further steps.

At this arraignment, the judge will take further steps, depending upon whether your loved one pleads guilty or not. The charges for the bail are usually higher if the crime they have committed is more serious.

4. Hire an experienced attorney 

If someone you love has recently been arrested, the first thing you need for them is to hire an attorney to represent them in the court of law. This is a basic right that the arrested person has no matter how big or small the crime he/she has committed is.

The court proceedings will determine what will happen to the arrested person after getting arrested. Hiring a trustworthy lawyer is the best way to help your loved one build the best case possible.

5. Search for a bail bondsman

Once you have found out the details of the arrest, the arraignment date and time and hired a lawyer to defend your loved one, you need to look for a bail bondsman. What a bail bondsman does is post bail for the person who has been arrested in situations where you are unable to afford to post bail yourself.

A bail bondsman asks for about 10 percent of the bond as well as some paperwork where you need to fill out with your personal information. After that, the bail bondsman receives 10 percent as his fee, out of the total money that is needed to post bail for your loved one.