Source: https://medvinlaw.com/virginia-bail-bond-motions-defense-lawyer/
Timestamp: 2018-07-21 05:35:34
Document Index: 318312844

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 19', '§ 19', '§ 16', '§ 18', '§ 18', '§ 16', '§ 19', '§ 19', '§ 53', '§ 18', '§ 53', '§ 18', '§ 19', '§ 19', '§ 19']

Virginia Criminal Lawyer's Explanation of Bail & Bond Laws & Motions
Virginia Bail and Bond Motions
Individuals charged with serious offenses and individuals who have a history of not appearing in court, will not be set free after an arrest (bail will be denied by the magistrate.) The defendant will need to have an attorney file a motion on his behalf to try and argue for release in front of a Judge. This is called a Motion to Admit the Defendant to Bail and Set Bond, or a Motion for the Reduction of Bond.
Setting a reasonable bond in Virginia is based on numerous legal grounds, to include: the Bill of Rights – 8th Amendment – United States Constitutional prohibition of excessive bail, the Virginia Constitutional prohibition of excessive bail (Article I, Section 9), and Virginia Code § 19.2-120 (see Virginia law sections below).
As such, Virginia law states that a person who is held in custody pending trial or hearing for an offense, shall be admitted to bail, unless there is probable cause to believe that:
This is seen as a burden on the government to provide proof as to why someone should not be given bond. A magistrate will commonly deny bond in instances where the accused has a history of Failure to Appear in court, or there are facts presented to the magistrate that will cause him to believe that there is probable cause of a danger to the public or a non-appearance. In these instances, a bond motion will be needed.
However, in more serious circumstances, the burden will rest on the accused. The accused will need to prove to the court that he is deserving of being admitted to bail. Virginia law states that the judge shall presume that no condition or combination of conditions will reasonably assure the appearance of the accused or the safety of the public if the accused is currently charged with one of the crimes listed in Section 19.2-120 (below). The only way for the accused to possibly be released on a reasonable bond is to go through a bond hearing with the prosecutor and defense lawyer arguing their cases in front of a judge.
A defense attorney should be consulted in all instances where a magistrate denies bond.
Virginia Bail & Bond Statutes
§ 19.2-119. Definitions.
“Bail” means the pretrial release of a person from custody upon those terms and conditions specified by order of an appropriate judicial officer.
“Bond” means the posting by a person or his surety of a written promise to pay a specific sum, secured or unsecured, ordered by an appropriate judicial officer as a condition of bail to assure performance of the terms and conditions contained in the recognizance.
“Criminal history” means records and data collected by criminal justice agencies or persons consisting of identifiable descriptions and notations of arrests, detentions, indictments, informations or other formal charges, and any deposition arising therefrom.
“Judicial officer” means, unless otherwise indicated, any magistrate serving the jurisdiction, any judge of a district court and the clerk or deputy clerk of any district court or circuit court within their respective cities and counties, any judge of a circuit court, any judge of the Court of Appeals and any justice of the Supreme Court of Virginia.
“Person” means any accused, or any juvenile taken into custody pursuant to § 16.1-246.
“Recognizance” means a signed commitment by a person to appear in court as directed and to adhere to any other terms ordered by an appropriate judicial officer as a condition of bail.
3. A violation of § 18.2-248, 18.2-248.01, 18.2-255, or 18.2-255.2 involving a Schedule I or II controlled substance if (i) the maximum term of imprisonment is 10 years or more and the person was previously convicted of a like offense or (ii) the person was previously convicted as a “drug kingpin” as defined in § 18.2-248;
11. A second or subsequent violation of § 16.1-253.2 or 18.2-60.4 or a substantially similar offense under the laws of any state or the United States;
F. The judicial officer shall inform the person of his right to appeal from the order denying bail or fixing terms of bond or recognizance consistent with § 19.2-124.
G. If the judicial officer sets a secured bond and the person engages the services of a licensed bail bondsman, the magistrate executing recognizance for the accused shall provide the bondsman, upon request, with a copy of the person’s Virginia criminal history record, if readily available, to be used by the bondsman only to determine appropriate reporting requirements to impose upon the accused upon his release. The bondsman shall pay a $15 fee payable to the state treasury to be credited to the Literary Fund, upon requesting the defendant’s Virginia criminal history record issued pursuant to § 19.2-389. The bondsman shall review the record on the premises and promptly return the record to the magistrate after reviewing it.
A. Any person convicted of two or more separate acts of violence when such offenses were not part of a common act, transaction or scheme, and who has been at liberty as defined in § 53.1-151 between each conviction, shall, upon conviction of a third or subsequent act of violence, be sentenced to life imprisonment and shall not have all or any portion of the sentence suspended, provided it is admitted, or found by the jury or judge before whom he is tried, that he has been previously convicted of two or more such acts of violence. For the purposes of this section, “act of violence” means (i) any one of the following violations of Chapter 4 (§ 18.2-30 et seq.) of Title 18.2:
B. Prior convictions shall include convictions under the laws of any state or of the United States for any offense substantially similar to those listed under “act of violence” if such offense would be a felony if committed in the Commonwealth.
C. Any person sentenced to life imprisonment pursuant to this section shall not be eligible for parole and shall not be eligible for any good conduct allowance or any earned sentence credits under Chapter 6 (§ 53.1-186 et seq.) of Title 53.1. However, any person subject to the provisions of this section, other than a person who was sentenced under subsection A of § 18.2-67.5:3 for criminal sexual assault convictions specified in subdivision f, (i) who has reached the age of sixty-five or older and who has served at least five years of the sentence imposed or (ii) who has reached the age of sixty or older and who has served at least ten years of the sentence imposed may petition the Parole Board for conditional release. The Parole Board shall promulgate regulations to implement the provisions of this subsection.
§ 19.2-124. Appeal from bail, bond, or recognizance order.
A. If a judicial officer denies bail to a person, requires excessive bond, or fixes unreasonable terms of a recognizance under this article, the person may appeal the decision of the judicial officer.
If the initial bail decision on a charge brought by a warrant or district court capias is made by a magistrate, clerk, or deputy clerk, the person shall first appeal to the district court in which the case is pending.
If the initial bail decision on a charge brought by direct indictment or presentment or circuit court capias is made by a magistrate, clerk, or deputy clerk, the person shall first appeal to the circuit court in which the case is pending.
If the appeal of an initial bail decision is taken on any charge originally pending in a district court after that charge has been appealed, certified, or transferred to a circuit court, the person shall first appeal to the circuit court in which the case is pending.
Any bail decision made by a judge of a court may be appealed successively by the person to the next higher court, up to and including the Supreme Court of Virginia, where permitted by law.
B. The attorney for the Commonwealth may appeal a bail, bond or recognizance decision to the same court to which the accused person is required to appeal under subsection A.
C. No filing or service fees shall be assessed or collected for any appeal taken pursuant to this section.
§ 19.2-125. Release pending appeal from conviction in court not of record.
A person who has been convicted of an offense in a district court and who has noted an appeal shall be given credit for any bond that he may have posted in the court from which he appeals and shall be treated in accordance with the provisions of this article.
§ 19.2-132. Motion to increase amount of bond fixed by judicial officer; when bond may be increased.
If the amount of any bond fixed by a judicial officer is subsequently deemed insufficient, or the security taken inadequate, or if it appears that bail should have been denied or that the person has violated a term or condition of his release, or has been convicted of or arrested for a felony or misdemeanor, the attorney for the Commonwealth of the county or city in which the person is held for trial may, on reasonable notice to the person and, if such person has been admitted to bail, to any surety on the bond of such person, move the appropriate judicial officer to increase the amount of such bond or to revoke bail. The court may grant such motion and may require new or additional sureties therefor, or both or revoke bail. Any surety in a bond for the appearance of such person may take from his principal collateral or other security to indemnify such surety against liability. The failure to notify the surety will not prohibit the court from proceeding with the bond hearing.
This entry was posted in Bail & Bond Motions, Virginia Criminal Law and tagged Bond Motion Lawyer in Alexandria Virginia, Bond Motion Lawyer in Arlington Virginia, Bond Motion Lawyer in Fairfax Virginia, Bond Motion Lawyer in Falls Church Virginia, Criminal Defense in Alexandria, Criminal Defense in Fairfax Virginia, Criminal Defense in Falls Church.
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