If you are charged with a criminal offence in Queensland, you may be arrested and kept in custody until you appear in court. Bail allows you to go home and remain in the community until such time as your court hearing, instead of remaining in custody. Bail is only granted under certain circumstances, and usually comes with conditions attached. Hiring a bail lawyer for your Brisbane criminal matter increases your chance of being granted bail.
There are two different types of bail.
Watch house bail
When you are arrested for committing a crime, you will be placed in the custody of a police and taken to the nearest watchhouse. If you cannot be taken to a court within 24 hours of the arrest, the officer in charge of the watchhouse may grant you ‘watch house bail’.
There are a number of options a watchhouse officer has when considering bail. You may be required to pay a deposit of money as security that you will appear in court for your hearing. Alternatively, you may need to agree to other conditions. For example, if you are not an Australian citizen, you could be asked to surrender your passport. Other conditions include an agreement that you report regularly to police, reside at a certain address, be subject to a curfew or not have contact with certain people. It is always a bail condition that you do not commit any further offences.
Court bail
If watch house bail is refused, you can apply for court bail. The court will schedule a bail application hearing. Our bail lawyers in Brisbane can help you with legal advice, and are also able to appear on your behalf. Most applications will first be heard in the Magistrates Court, although serious criminal charges such as murder or if you have already been refused bail in the Magistrates Court, you can apply for bail in the Supreme Court.
Considerations for granting bail
The court will decide whether it thinks there is a risk that you will:
- Commit a further offence;
- Endanger another person;
- Obstruct the course of justice; or
- Fail to appear for your hearing
It will consider a range of evidence, including:
- Whether you have previous charges or convictions
- Whether you have previously breached bail
- The nature of the crime you are charged with
- Whether you have ties to the area, such as a job or family, that mean you are less likely to be a flight risk
- Your general character, for which you can offer character witnesses
If bail is approved, the process is similar to that of watch house bail. You will be asked to agree to special conditions or pay a deposit as security.
If it is refused, you may appeal to the Supreme Court for bail.
Breaching bail
If you breach any condition of your bail, a warrant for your arrest will be issued and you will be charged with breaching your bail. Failing to comply with bail conditions is a criminal offence in addition to your original charges.
The best thing to do, if you have been granted bail and breached a condition, is to seek legal advice from a bail lawyer in Brisbane. After getting legal advice, it is in your interest to hand yourself in and provide explanation for the breach. Whether you hand yourself in or wait for arrest, you will be taken to the watch house and have to appear before Court to explain the breach.
If you are charged with any criminal offence, seeking help from our team of bail lawyers in Brisbane should be a first step. We can walk you through your options and help you apply for bail so that you can go home and wait for trial.