BAIL

Bail is being given liberty until the next stage in the case.

Remand in Custody is being kept in custody until your trial.

This is an extremely important pre-trial matter which needs to be considered in every case.  A person can be released on bail at any point after being arrested by the police, sometimes however it is felt necessary to keep the suspect/defendant in custody until their trial.

 The police can release a suspect on bail while they make further inquiries.  This means that the suspect is released from custody on condition that they return to the police station on a specified date in the future.

The police can also give bail to a suspect who has been charged with an offence.  In this situation the defendant is given bail on condition that they appear at the Magistrates' Court on a specified date.

The decision whether or not to grant bail is made by the custody officer under s38 of the Police And Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE) (as amended by the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994)  The custody officer can refuse to grant bail if;

1) the suspect's name and address cannot be ascertained

2) there are doubts about whether the suspect's name and address are genuine

3) If any person fails to surrender to police bail on the date specified then the police have the right to arrest them.

The Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 gave the police the power to impose certain conditions on a grant of bail.  These include:

·    asking the suspect to surrender their passport

·    to report regularly to the police station

·    getting another person to stand surety for them

·    These conditions can be imposed in order to;

·    make sure the suspect surrenders to bail

·    does not commit an offence whilst on bail

·    does not interfere with witnesses

·    does not interfere in any other way with the course of justice