A sex offense accusation or charge can suddenly destroy your life and compromise your freedom. Upon an arrest as a suspect in a sex crime, any chance of securing reliable employment goes out the window, your reputation becomes shredded, and your friends and acquaintances turn their back on you.
To make matters worse, if you are guilty of a sex offense, you will have a lifetime legal obligation to register as a sex offender even after serving your sentence. While bail bondsmen cannot offer you legal representation in court, they can help you secure your freedom on bond to go home before your charge's trial date.
Even better, our knowledgeable and seasoned bondsmen can offer skilled legal support whenever needed and help you understand what to expect at your initial court hearing. If you or a loved one needs speedy Riverside bail bonds services upon an arrest as a suspect in a felony sexual case or rape, our bail bondsmen can help.
Understanding What Bail Means in the Legal Justice System
Several people are familiar with the term "bail," but many do not know what it means in the eyes of the law. Generally speaking, bail refers to the predetermined or court-set sum of money you should pay upon an arrest to show the court you are willing and ready to make all your court appearances before your case's judgment.
The police officers will rely on the bail schedule to determine your charge's bail price upon an arrest. However, if your charge has no predetermined bail amount, the police will hold you in custody after passing the booking process, awaiting your case's arraignment or bail hearing.
During this initial court proceeding, a judge will decide the amount you should pay as bail, depending on several factors, including your criminal record, the seriousness of your offense, and whether you are a flight risk. While several crimes could make you ineligible for bail, a felony sexual assault or rape charge is not one of them.
If you are eligible for release from jail on bail, the court will allow you to clear the amount using cash, property, or a bail bond to obtain your freedom. When you fail to make your court appearances as required, the court will forfeit your bail and issue an arrest warrant, authorizing police officers to arrest and detain you.
How Bail Bondsman Can Help After an Arrest for a Felony Sexual Assault Offense
If you are like many defendants or arrestees who find paying cash bail challenging, bail bonds could be the ideal solution for your unique situation. A bail bondsman can sign a contract with the court to clear your bail when you fail to appear at your court-scheduled appearances or hearings as required.
In exchange, the bondsman will require you, your friend, or a relative to pay ten percent of your bail price as his/her premium for quick Riverside bail bonds services. That means if your rape offense's bail price is $20,000, your bondsman will require you to pay only $2,000 as his/her service fee.
Unlike cash bail, which the court requires in full, you can pay the bondsman this premium in installments through your convenient means of payment, including Western Union, bitcoin, or PayPal. Despite these costs, you cannot overlook the need for bail bond services if you are in legal custody as a suspect in a rape case.
When you have no one to call to help you clear your bail price upon an arrest, a bondsman can help you obtain your freedom as soon as possible.
What to Expect During Your Case's Bail Hearing
Unless your arrest occurred on a weekend or public holiday, your case's bail hearing or arraignment should occur within twenty-four hours. If your arrest occurred during a holiday or a weekend, you could stay in legal custody for up to seventy hours, pending your case's arraignment or bail hearing.
During your case's bail hearing, the judge could decide to release you on your own recognizance (O.R.), meaning you do not have to post bail. However, you must sign an agreement to show up on your scheduled court dates to challenge the allegations you are up against. You could be eligible for an O.R. release if:
- You are not a flight risk.
- You do not have a past criminal background.
- You have family and community ties.
If you are not an excellent candidate for an O.R. release, the court will require you to pay the set bail price to obtain your freedom.
Factors That Could Influence Your Bail Price
The bail bond process begins once you appear at the bail hearing, where a judge will determine your eligibility for bail and the amount you should pay for your unique charge. Since every case is unique, several factors will come into play when determining your bail price, including:
Community Ties
If you have full-time employment, own properties in the city, or are a member of a neighborhood religious group, the court could give you a lower bail price because you have community ties. Having community ties shows the court that there is a high chance that you will appear on your scheduled hearing dates.
Financial Resources
If your defense attorney can prove to the judge that you are indigent or struggling financially, he/she could reduce your bail. For instance, if you are unemployed, there is a high chance the court could set the minimum bail price possible for your case.
Whether You are a Danger to the Safety of the Community
If you have a history of violent offenses, the court could consider you a threat to public safety. In that case, your bail price for a felony sexual assault offense or rape could be steep enough to discourage you from committing new offenses while out on bail.
The Severity of Your Charge
Rape charges are generally severe in the eyes of the law, but every case is unique. If a dangerous weapon was involved in furtherance of the offense, the court could require you to pay a high bail amount for your case.
Whether You are a Flight Risk
If you are an alien or non-citizen, the court will consider you a flight risk because there are chances that you could flee to your home country upon your pretrial release on bail. In that case, the court could deny you a release on bail or set a steep bail price for your case.
While a bail schedule guides the judge when determining the bail amount for various offenses, he/she has leeway in determining the specific amount he/she finds suitable and fair for your case. That is why your attorney's presence during the bail hearing is crucial. Your defense attorney can help convince the court to lower your bail price by raising reasonable arguments.
Once the court sets your bail price for a rape charge, your attorney can help obtain Riverside bail bond services without delay to obtain your freedom.
Legal Definition of Rape or Felony Sexual Assault Under Penal Code (PC) 261
According to PC 261, you commit the crime of rape when you engage in non-consensual sexual intercourse with another person who is not your spouse through the use of force, threats, or fraud. Here are key facts you need to know about rape under PC 261:
- If the victim has a mental problem or was unconscious or intoxicated at the time of the offense, the court will consider him/her incapable of giving consent.
- Sexual assault is a felony and will strip you of your gun rights after a conviction at trial.
- The sentence you will receive for a PC 261 violation conviction will be more severe if the victim is a minor.
- You can challenge a rape charge by arguing that the sexual intercourse was consensual, meaning the victim willingly and freely agreed to the act.
- You could qualify for an expungement under PC 1203.4 after completing your probation and adhering to all the required terms and conditions.
For the sake of PC 261, sexual intercourse means any penetration, regardless of how slight, of another person's genitalia or vagina by a penis. If you are guilty of felony sexual assault or rape, your sentence will include:
- Three (3), four (4), or eight (8) years in prison.
- A fine amounting to up to $10,000.
- Felony probation.
On top of these legal penalties, a conviction under this statute will count as a strike under the Three Strikes Law codified under PC 667. That means your subsequent convictions for violent or felony offenses will attract harsher penalties. A third strike or conviction for a felony offense could attract up to 25 years or life behind bars under PC 667.
The sooner you obtain your freedom upon an arrest as a suspect in a rape case, the better to go home and have a better working relationship with your defense attorney to prepare defenses to challenge the offense. That is where the services of a bail bondsman become crucial to securing your freedom without delay if you cannot afford your bail price.
Aside from giving you adequate time to work on your defenses with your defense attorney, securing Riverside bail bonds services upon an arrest allows you to continue working and attending school if you are a student.
Types of Felony Sexual Assault Charges
Generally speaking, sexual assault is a broader term that encompasses various non-consensual sexual offenses, including rape. If you are under investigation as a suspect in a sexual assault case, the prosecutor could file any of the following types of felony sexual assault charges against you:
Rape
Also known as felony sexual assault, rape is one of the most severe sexual offenses you could face in the Penal Code because the prosecutor will file your charges as a felony. The severity of the penalties you will face upon a conviction for a rape charge will depend on the circumstances and facts of your unique case.
For instance, if the victim sustained a severe bodily injury, you could be ineligible for probation instead of jail time upon conviction, meaning you will spend your entire sentence behind bars.
Statutory Rape
Unlike a rape offense, the circumstances of your case and criminal history will come into play when determining how to file your statutory rape charge because it is a wobbler offense. PC 261.5 defines statutory rape as sexual intercourse with any person below the age of eighteen (18) years (age of consent).
Even if the minor consented or agreed to the sexual intercourse, you could be guilty of statutory rape since minors are legally incapable of consent. When charged as a misdemeanor, a PC 261.5 violation conviction will attract up to one (1) year of jail time and a fine not exceeding $1,000.
However, if you are guilty of felony statutory rape, your sentence will be harsher, including up to four (4) years of jail time and a fine not exceeding $10,000.
You cannot overlook the need for a seasoned and skilled attorney if you want to stand a chance of securing a desirable outcome in the criminal justice system that is not on your side. Aside from helping you obtain Riverside bail bond services immediately after an arrest, your defense attorney can craft the legal defenses that could help you obtain a dismissal of the charge or lighter penalties.
Find Riverside Bail Bonds Services Near Me
Are you behind bars as a suspect in a felony sexual assault or rape case in Riverside?
Worry no more because you have come to the right place. At Fausto Bail Bonds, we can help you post the often unaffordable bail price for your offense to obtain your freedom, pending your case's verdict.
We invite you to call us at 855-328-7867 if you or a loved one needs bail bond services for a rape charge.