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Being arrested is no picnic. It is an ordeal for the arrestee as well as the friends and family of the arrestee. After the arrest, a bail hearing takes place in front of a judge to set the amount of the bail. The judge will take into consideration several factors, including how severe the crime, any previous convictions, and if the arrestee has steady employment. Once bail has been set, a friend or family member will have to decide to pay the full bail amount themselves or secure the services of a bail bondsman to get the person out of jail.

Bail bondsmen make their living off the fee they can charge for posting a defendant's bail. Usually the fee is a percentage of the total bail. Here are 5 tips for surviving the bail bonding process:

1. Research a reputable, professional and long standing bail bonding company. You will be dealing with the bonding agent until the case is settled making this an important decision. The Internet is a great place to search for some well-recommended options. Once you have found a few call each one and ask them questions. Select the agent that you are the most comfortable working with. Make sure you have available: full name of the person in jail, what jail they are in, the arrestee's booking number, the charges, and any other relevant information.

2. Determine the appropriate terms for the bail agreement. The bail agent will usually meet you at the jail to post the bond. If you are not in the same city as the arrestee the paperwork and payments can be handled electronically or over the phone. A nonrefundable fee (generally a percentage of the of the total bail amount) is then paid and in some cases collateral or a cosigner in case the arrestee decides to jump bail by not showing up in court.

3. Getting the arrestee out of jail. The bondsman will notify the court that he has an agreement on the behalf of the arrestee. The bail agent posts the bond after the fee has been paid and any collateral has been signed over. The bondsman or the court clerk will hand the arrestee an official notification that the bail has been paid, the arrestee shows the slip to the judge, and they are released on bail.

4. What happens after being released from jail? The arrestee must show up for all court proceedings and meet any conditions set by the bail agent. The defendant will have to comply with all their legal requirements or they will be in violation of their bail and be forced to pay the full bail amount and sit in jail until their court date.

5. What are the consequences of not following the requirements of the bail? If the arrestee fails to appear in court, the bail agent is required to pay the full bail amount. The bail agent locates the defendant and takes them back to jail. If the arrestee fails to appear for the court date any collateral signed over with the bond could be lost.

For more information please visit our website http://www.leessummitmobailbonds.com.

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The debate on gun control includes many issues such as whether restrictions are permissible under the Constitution, and whether gun control laws actually help to control crime. State laws restricting firearms vary and are independent of federal firearms laws, which are surprisingly few compared to the estimated 300 major state gun laws. In addition, it has been widely estimated that the number of local gun laws could be as high as 20,000.

A list of the major Federal Law restricting gun control in the U.S. is strikingly short:

• 1934 - National Firearms Act was a response to prohibition and the rise of gangsters, with the goal of curbing the use of automatic-fire weapons.

• 1938 - Federal Firearms Act regulated and monitored the selling and shipping of firearms through both interstate and foreign commerce channels.

• 1968 - Gun Control Act implemented license requirements and regulation, as well as restricting the sale of firearms to convicted felons, the mentally incompetent, and drug users. The Act also outlawed mail order sales of rifles and shotguns.

• 1986 - Law Enforcement Officers Protection Act banned the sale of armor piercing ammunition that was capable of penetrating bullet proof clothing.

• 1990 - Crime Control Act created criminal penalties for possessing firearms within school zones; and restricted the assembly of illegal semiautomatic rifles and shotguns.

• 1994 - Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act enacted stricter rules for background checks.

• 1994 - Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act banned assault weapons and enhanced laws for the possession of guns by juveniles.

• 1999 - Gun Bill is passed that requires all new hand guns to have a trigger lock.

Proponents of gun control argue that stronger Federal laws are necessary to restrict firearms because state laws cannot curb the flow of guns from less restrictive states to more restrictive states. These advocates seek to ban specific firearms that are believed to be primarily used for criminal purposes or pose unusually high risks to the public. They also seek stricter regulations and restrictions on who may possess a firearm. Unfortunately, the actual impact of gun laws on crime is difficult to determine because there simply is not enough comprehensive, current, or accurate data to definitively assess whether there is a causal connection between guns and violence.

Various organizations collect data from the FBI and U.S. Census Bureau to provide some insight into the correlation between firearms and violence in the U.S. Four studies provide the following statistics:

1. In 2010, there were 14,748 murders reported by the FBI, and 9, 958 of those crimes involved a firearm;

2. There were 31,347 gun-related fatalities which include homicides, legal intervention, suicides, and accidents, in 2009;

3. Approximately 4.3 million victims reported non-lethal crimes including rape or sexual assault, robbery, aggravated assault, and simple assault in 2009. An estimated 22% of those crimes involved the use of weapons; and 8% of weapons used were firearms; and

4. In the five year period beginning in 1987, approximately 62,200 victims of violent crimes (1% of all violent crimes) used a gun to defend themselves. An additional 20,000 per year used a gun to protect property. These figures may also include persons who work as police officers and armed security guards.

Opponents of gun laws cite recent U.S. Supreme Court cases that hold the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution protects an individual's right to possess a firearm for lawful purposes, such as self-defense, within the home and in federal enclaves. The Court has also affirmed lower court decisions that determined handguns are "arms" for the purposes of the Second Amendment. Critics of these decisions argue that the Constitution does not contain an express right of an individual to use firearms for personal self-defense, and that an individual's need to protect themselves with weapons has been greatly diminished in modern society.

California Criminal Law Specialist Doreen B. Boxer, Esq., protects individuals and companies charged with - or under investigation for - criminal offenses. If your life, liberty or reputation are at stake, you need Boxer in your corner. http://orangecounty-criminaldefenselawyer.com

(c) Copyright - Doreen B. Boxer. All Rights Reserved Worldwide.

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In 1991, Harmelin v. Michigan, the United States Supreme Court held that a sentence of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole for a serious felony is constitutional under the Eighth Amendment. During the case, the Supreme Court members heavily debated whether or to what extent the Eighth Amendment requires proportionality. Some justices argued that the Eighth Amendment has no proportionality requirement for the length of prison sentences, while others believed that it had some degree of proportionality.

The Eighth Amendment clearly states that "excessive fines" are prohibited. That implies that the Eighth Amendment requires a degree of proportionality between the nature of the crime and the fine issued. However, the Eighth Amendment allows says that "cruel and unusual punishments" may not be inflicted. The Amendment never states whether it is cruel and unusual to punish a less culpable class of persons, innocent people, or people who commit certain types of crimes. It simply states that the punishment cannot be "cruel and unusual." Setting someone on fire as punishment is clearly both cruel and unusual. This punishment hasn't been used in the United States in a long time and it is known to inflict a large amount of pain and suffering. Executing children can also be viewed as cruel and unusual since children are less developed than adults and children are not frequently executed. We often punish juveniles differently from the way we punish adults. However, there does not seem to be a clear proportionality argument stemming from the Eighth Amendment. The Eighth Amendment seems to provide more of a maximum allowed punishment for a particular class of people.

In pre-colonial England, many crimes were punishable by death or other severe punishments. States have previously introduced the death penalty for non-homicide crimes such as rape. Treason can also be punishable by death even if no deaths results from it.

In my opinion, the Eighth Amendment would prohibit the punishment of people who have not committed a crime or had no requisite state of mind to commit a crime. In addition, I believe that the Eighth Amendment limits the punishment toward certain groups of people such as the mentally ill and juveniles. However, I think that pure proportionality should stem from the Fourteenth Amendment.

In 1996, in BMW of North America, Inc. v. Gore, the United States Supreme Court relied on the Fourteenth Amendment and held that excessive punitive damage awards violate substantive due process. Likewise, the proportionality of the crime to the punishment should be examined under the Due Process clause. There are many goals to punishment and varying views on the harm of crimes to society so proportionality is subjective.

To solve this problem, I would recommend dividing crimes into categories: petty crimes punishable by a maximum of six months imprisonment, crimes punishable by a minimum of six months imprisonment and a maximum of life imprisonment, crimes punishable by mandatory life imprisonment, and crimes punishable by death. Each crime would have to be proportional to such category. Otherwise, it would violate substantive due process. Factors to evaluate in each crime may be: (1) the degree of reprehensibility of the defendant's conduct; (2) the amount of harm the defendant caused to both the victim and society; and (3) the reversibility of the harm particularly through the defendant's future actions such as restitution to the victim(s).

In other words, the punishment has to be "grossly disproportional" to the crime committed. Creating more categories has no legal basis and should be left to democratically elected legislatures to decide. Under this reasoning, the ban on "excessive fines" also stems not only from the Eighth Amendment also from the Due Process Clause.

The Eighth Amendment and Due Process Clause work together. For example, the Eighth Amendment may not forbid requiring someone to wear a shirt saying "I steal mail" as punishment for stealing his neighbor's mail. However, requiring someone to wear that shirt every day for his whole life may violate substantive due process.

Anton Lebedev writes about legal issues including constitutional legal issues. Anton Lebedev also markets law firms including the Law Offices of C. Melody Edwardo, PLLC, a Raleigh NC law firm.

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In California, the state's new realignment plan is starting to affect the dynamics inside of the county jails. According to Orange County officials, the jails are becoming more dangerous because of an increasing number of seasoned and more violent inmates being housed there instead of state prisons.

The realignment plan is an attempt to reduce the overcrowded conditions of California prisons by shifting more inmates to local jails. While the inmates who are being sent to county lockup to serve sentences are classified as non-violent offenders, this does not mean they abstain from acting violently inside the jail.

Previously, inmates housed in the Orange County jails were awaiting trial or sentencing or were serving a sentence of less than a year for less-serious offenses. Now, many inmates are serving sentences of up to three years or parole violators who are sent back to jail.

Many of the inmates going into county lockups for extended periods of time have been in the system a long time and spent some time inside state prisons. As a result, there has been a surge in violence inside Orange County jails.

Reports show that from January 1 to July 26, 2012, there have been 277 inmate assaults. A huge increase over 2011, which saw only 272 assaults for the entire year. There were also 16 attacks on members of the jail staff during that time period. Last year, there were only 18 attacks total.

Hoarding of contraband is also on the rise inside Orange County jails. Because inmates are staying longer, they are starting to settle in, much in the same way state prisoners do when they know they will be living in one space for a long period. Most contraband, including drugs, is brought in through the mail. This is leading many to consider switching to an email-only system instead of allowing mail to be sent to the jail.

Jails must also spend more time on solving the housing puzzle as each new inmate comes in. The staff must know an inmate's criminal history and background in order to know how much of a risk they pose to other inmates. This is decided by factors such as gang affiliation or violence. Knowing who needs to be kept away from the general population is a key part in maintaining safety inside the jail.

It has also been found that some inmates are trying to assert their dominance inside the jails by forming gangs and trying to "tax" other inmates. To stem off this type of control, the staff must find a place to transfer the inmates to break up these gangs.

For Orange County, there is concern that they will soon be facing their own overcrowding problem inside the jails. It is expected that by October 2012, all three of the jails will be at capacity. Right now, the inmate population is approximately 6,600, with less than 200 beds available for incoming inmates.

Tonya Page Bail Bonds is a professional bail bond company serving Orange County California. Tonya Page works alongside her husband, Greg, of Greg Rynerson Bail Bonds. Together, they are a successful, family owned and operated business, and are expert bondsmen and licensed professionals with over 35 years of experience. They understand and want to help families that are in an urgent time of need. Contact them today for confidential California bail bonds assistance.

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We all have friends who have gotten in trouble over the years. Perhaps they did not end up in jail, and maybe they were far from the situation being that serious. Whatever the case was, you likely would have done as much as possible to help them get through it. As an adult, life can be difficult. If you hear of a close friend being arrested for a crime that does not sound like something they would do, or even if it does sound like something they would, they have a right to a law professional. Do not stand by and let them get the worst possible conviction because they did not have a criminal defense attorney.

As you look for a criminal defense attorney for your friend, there are several areas to consider. You will want to find a lawyer who is personal, professional, and successful.

Finding a criminal defense attorney that is personal is so important. Dealing with someone like this will more easily allow your friend to be at ease in his or her situation. It will also help them to feel like they are getting the help they need. This type of law professional should deal directly with their client rather than having a paralegal do all of the work.

Professionalism is also important. Professionalism does not necessarily equal years of experience. Any amount of experience does not always make someone act professionally. Some people just have a knack for being cumbersome and obtrusive. This is not the type of person you want to set your friend up with.

Success is of obvious importance. The goal for your friend is to either be set free or have a lesser sentence than what might normally be the case. You will want to do some research in this area as well as some of the other areas because it is important to know the reputation of the individual. Looking at online reviews can be helpful for this.

It is important to find the right law professional as soon as possible for your friend. The longer it takes to find the right one, the more time your friend has on their own facing the questioning.

No one wants their close friend to be in trouble. When it happens, you can be the friend you need to be by assisting them in finding a criminal defense attorney that will help your friend get through this time.

Learn more about criminal defense attorney Baton Rouge at: http://josephkscott.com.

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Toronto is Canada's largest city. It is also ranked as North America's fifth most populated area. Despite its population density and its inherent diverse and multicultural demography, the city is teemed with law abiding citizens making Toronto a city that has over the years, enjoyed a low crime rate. This was brought about by the city's conscious endeavors to support programs that are designed to prevent crime.

A particular program that supports the city's low crime rate is The Crime Prevention through Environmental Design. This program seeks to produce and provide the city with responsible police officers to protect the citizens and uphold the law. These types of programs aim to provide good role models for the citizens while other programs aim to promote harmony and peacefulness within the city, making Toronto one of the most ideal cities to live in.

But what if, as a citizen, you have committed a crime and/or have been charged for it? What are the steps that you need to do? From whom can you seek advice about the situation? And what would be the first smart move for you to do if in case this happens? Would the procedure be different in this city as that of other cities or other locations?

Here are three things to do if you have been charged of a crime in this city:

1. Turn yourself in. Hiding from the authorities is never ever a good idea. Hiding from the police will simply aggravate your situation, while turning yourself in will give you the chance to defend yourself

2. Let the professionals handle your situation. Being engaged in this type of situation may trigger your emotions and lead you to making hasty and even bad decisions. Hire a lawyer and trust your lawyer to do the task for you, from your bail, release, trial, defense, and acquittal.

3. Attend the trial process and resolutions. Proceedings, court hearings, and any other meetings required by the court to complete, justify, or push through with the trial of your case should be complied with.

Being charged of a crime does not automatically equate to being guilty. Learn what steps to take, study your case, and trust your lawyer to provide services that will help you go through this tedious and sensitive process. Having a clean or even flawless personal profile is often the key to success. The best thing to do is to know the law, the policies, and the regulations within your city. Being a good citizen will a pave the way of a good future. And Toronto being one of the cities with the lowest crime rate, it would really be easy to avoid crime and become a good law abiding citizen.

If you've been charged with a crime in the Toronto area, you need a criminal defense lawyer. A Criminal Lawyer in Toronto can be your best defense. Check out their website at http://toronto-criminal-defence-lawyer.ca for information and a consultation about your criminal defense needs. The article about Essential Facts About Criminal Lawyer can help you. More information can be found here.

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Every now and then a client will not follow their attorneys advice in a criminal case and elect to move forward with a jury trial. Here is the typical scenario where this occurs.

Client is charged with a crime, which they do not believe they are guilty of. However the evidence is overwhelming against the defendant, and there is not a good chance of prevailing at trial. So the attorney does a great job and is able to convince the Prosecution to offer a favorable plea deal. Typically a reduction in charges, or significantly less jail and fines. Whatever gets worked out. The Attorney then sits down with the client and explains to them the plea deal. Explains to them the evidence that is against them. And tells them in their opinion they should take the plea deal due to the amount of overwhelming evidence. Client says no and insists on moving forward with the trial.

Now just so we are clear the client has every right to want a jury trial. I mean it is their constitutional right, and that decision cannot be made by the attorney. But when the attorney knows the client is not making a good decision, and there is a chance they could end up worse off if they are convicted. That attorney needs to protect themselves and their practice.

Why do they need to protect themselves you ask. Well I have a seen a few attorneys in my day get thrown under the bus by their clients after they are convicted at trial. Usually it involves the client hiring a new attorney, and asking the court for a new trial because the previous attorney didn't relay to them an offer made by the prosecution which they say they would have accepted it. Or the client will say the attorney didn't properly advise them of their chances at trial and misled them into thinking they had a better chance than they actually did.

So what do you do as an attorney to prevent this happening. Well its very simple. Have the client sign a document where the attorney clearly outlines the offered plea deal from the Prosecution. Explain that it is the attorneys advice the client take this deal. Then write the client has rejected this offer and has instead elected to move forward with the trial. Once the client has signed the letter give them a copy and keep when in your file.

To avoid any issues about trust or not fighting, what I usually explain to the client is I document all plea deals offered by the Prosecution just in case there is any confusion later on. Sometimes its easier for people to understand what the proposed deal is if they can see it on paper.

Need a Seattle DUI Lawyer. Don't wait to hire a Seattle DUI Lawyer experienced in this area of law. Matthew Leyba is that attorney.

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It is always difficult when family members find themselves in trouble. Whether or not they are guilty probably matters in some ways to you, but either way, you want them to be free or have a very small sentence. Because of this, you will likely do everything you can to get them the criminal defense attorney that will help them the most.

As you look for someone to defend your family member's case, you will want to find one that is empathetic, passionate, knowledgeable and experienced, and flexible. These areas may not seem important on the surface, but as you take a closer look, you will see that they are essential to your loved one's cause.

Someone with empathy will do everything they can to help your family member because they feel your pain and the pain of your loved one. They may have never been through a situation that you are going through, but they might feel like they are going through it because you are. This type of law professional will not let their emotion get in the way of their work, but they will let that push them forward to help your cause.

Passion comes in where the empathy goes out. The empathy causes the passion as does the desire for justice. If your family member is not guilty then that passion will go toward having your loved one freed. If your loved one is guilty then it might go towards them having a lesser sentence. Whatever the case, the criminal defense attorney that you find should passionately work towards the best for your family member.

Knowledge and experience are two more essentials for you as you seek a criminal defense attorney. They should have knowledge based on their experiences, and they should have knowledge based on the experiences of others as found in case studies. Being familiar with everything in both of these areas will make them well-rounded to help you with your cause.

Flexibility is another important area. This can be integrated along with all of the other areas in some way. It is important for a law professional to go with the flow, so to speak, but it is also important for them to have a direction. Being flexible in this way will help your loved one. Everything is not always black and white, and a lawyer having the ability to see this will be a help as they defend your loved one.

Does a family member need the help of a criminal defense lawyer Baton Rouge? Learn more at: http://josephkscott.com.

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When law enforcement is investigating a possible DUI one of the pieces of evidence they use is the suspects performance on the standardized field sobriety tests. Typically during a DUI investigation the arresting officer will administer three standardized field sobriety tests. These tests are the horizontal gaze nystagmus test, the walk and turn test, and the one leg stand test.

Most Prosecutors and law enforcement officers believe if an individual performs poorly on these tests it is directly due to alcohol consumption and therefore they must have been impaired. However there are many factors that can affect the performance on these tests that Prosecutors and law enforcement officers completely ignore that are completely unrelated to alcohol impairment.

Age: The walk and turn test, and the one leg stand test are physical tests. They are exactly how they sound. Walking heel to toe, or standing on one leg for approximately 30 seconds. Obviously the older an individual is the less likely they will be able to physically perform these tests.

Weight: Overweight individuals can also perform poorly on these tests due to their weight and balance issues they may have.

Sleep deprivation: Studies have shown that individuals who have not slept in 24 hours will exhibit nystagmus at maximum deviation which is the third and fourth clue law enforcement looks for during the horizontal gaze nystagmus test.

Type of shoes: This may be common sense but if an individual is wearing high heel shoes or even flip flops these are not considered athletic footwear. Well guess what the one leg stand and walk and turn tests are. Tests of athleticism and balance.

Ability to understand English: All three of these standardized field sobriety tests involve lengthy instructions and demonstrations by the arresting officer. If English is a second language than an individual may not have the capabilities to fully understand the instructions and their performance can be mistaken for alcohol consumption if the tests are performed incorrectly.

Clothing: Imagine standing on the side of the road in December when it is snowing or raining outside. You are only in a tee shirt and jeans. The fact that you are not wearing clothes designed to be outside can affect your thinking as well as your memory when performing these tests.

Overall there are many factors that can cause an individual to perform poorly on these tests that are not alcohol related. This list is by no means exhaustive, but these are the most common causes of poor performance on the standardized field sobriety tests that are not alcohol related.

Matthew Leyba is a Seattle DUI Lawyer in Washington State. He represents those accused of DUI and other serious traffic offenses in his Seattle DUI Lawyer practice.

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