I am trying to get my head around what happens when you are arrested, charged, tried in this country, and I keep getting stuck or getting confused or receiving conflicting information. This is what I think it is but please comment if true or false.
1. You are arrested and can be held for up to 72 hours without charge for investigation. During this time you are held in a jail at the police station.
2. If you are going to be charged you then go in front of the fiscal at the court. The fiscal will decide whether you are to be released on bail (fianza?) or remanded in custody. If remanded in custody he/she will decide for how long - 3 months, a year, whatever. Are there only a few different time scales? Where are you remanded in custody? What is preventiva for and how does it differentiate from a standard prison?
3. If you are allowed out on bail, the money has to be paid. Not like in the UK (and USA?) where you or someone else promises to pay it if you do not turn up for trial. Who gets the bail money? Does the judge/fiscal have a cut? If you pay bail is there still a trial and if you turn up for trial do you get your money back (doubt that one lol)?
4. If you are out on bail do you have to report periodically to the fiscal? Is it like a suspended sentence where you don't have a trial but if you are arrested again during a specific time period then you go to jail?
5. Assuming not out on bail you go to court and are sentenced. I assume you then go to a normal jail. Is there parole here? How much of a sentence can you expect to serve?
All help gratefully received!
Matilda
1. You are arrested and can be held for up to 72 hours without charge for investigation. During this time you are held in a jail at the police station.
2. If you are going to be charged you then go in front of the fiscal at the court. The fiscal will decide whether you are to be released on bail (fianza?) or remanded in custody. If remanded in custody he/she will decide for how long - 3 months, a year, whatever. Are there only a few different time scales? Where are you remanded in custody? What is preventiva for and how does it differentiate from a standard prison?
3. If you are allowed out on bail, the money has to be paid. Not like in the UK (and USA?) where you or someone else promises to pay it if you do not turn up for trial. Who gets the bail money? Does the judge/fiscal have a cut? If you pay bail is there still a trial and if you turn up for trial do you get your money back (doubt that one lol)?
4. If you are out on bail do you have to report periodically to the fiscal? Is it like a suspended sentence where you don't have a trial but if you are arrested again during a specific time period then you go to jail?
5. Assuming not out on bail you go to court and are sentenced. I assume you then go to a normal jail. Is there parole here? How much of a sentence can you expect to serve?
All help gratefully received!
Matilda