Penal Code Section 1269c - Bail Deviation
When it comes to bail deviations, they can be good or bad as they relate to criminal defense. A Bail Commissioner in Los Angeles County permits some inmates to get a lower bail than the bail schedule usually would be. In fact, some inmates are able to contact the Bail Commissioner while they're in custody and even get released on their own recognizance which means they don't have to post bail and they can get out just on a promise to a peer.
Another bail issue related to a bail deviation in Los Angeles County occurs when the police or prosecutors attempt to make the bail higher than the bail schedule. The bail schedule relates to bail deviation and involves the judges creating the appropriate bail for every charge in Los Angeles County.
For example, if someone is charged with assault with a deadly weapon, the bail schedule is $50,000.00. However, the prosecutors and police can ask the judge to deviate from the bail schedule and increase the bail rate. I've seen bails up to a million dollars if someone is using a deadly weapon, is dangerous to the public, hasn't done enough to rise to the level of an attempted murder or something, but has shown conduct that is very dangerous to human life. The police can then try to get a bail deviation and get a higher bail than the judge would generally set.
What is a Defense To A Bail Deviation?
When the prosecutors are requesting a bail deviation, a defense attorney in Los Angeles is entitled to notice of that, and the defense can certainly argue against that. Ultimately, the judge will decide what the bail will be set at, and of course, people in Los Angeles County who are charged with crimes are presumed innocent. A defense attorney will argue that there shouldn't be a bail deviation and either argue the bail should be set at what the scheduled bail is or you can even argue for a lower bail than the schedule.
The judge will look at several factors, including flight risk and danger to the public. The judge is going to look at a person's criminal record. There are several different things that can be done and argued. Suppose your client has no criminal record and is certainly not a flight risk because they've lived here all their life. It can't be argued that they are a danger to the public based on their conduct, then a bail deviation will be tough for the prosecutors to be successful with.
If, on the other hand, your client is very dangerous, is a flight risk, and has used a weapon during a crime – then the prosecutors will have a stronger argument that there should be a bail deviation – the bail should be higher than what the bail schedule is.
So, when it comes to bail deviations, you will want to get a reasonable criminal defense attorney to fight against them because most people want to be free. In contrast, they fight their case, but unfortunately, the biggest thing when it relates to bail deviations is the prosecutor trying to scare the judge into setting a high bail because the judge is worried that if the judge doesn't set a high bail, somehow this particular defendant is going to hurt somebody in public or is going to flee and not be able to be got back into the jurisdiction to face the charges against them.
What Type of Cases Do Prosecutors Seek Bail Deviations?
The typical cases that I see bail deviation sought on are violent felonies – shootings, gang-related cases – cases where there's a high degree of violence involved, weapons are involved, and somebody basically can get killed.
The biggest thing that the prosecutors and judges, and even the police, are looking at when they deal with people in domestic violence situations and otherwise – is if they let that person out, are they going to be putting themselves in a position where that person is going to retaliate against the victim in the case – go and do something deadly to them – and now the family and anybody else that knows about the case is going to be looking at the prosecutor and judge and even police and say, hey you guys had the guy.
Why would you let him go? Now, look what he's done. So, the biggest thing to consider when you're talking about a bail deviation in LA County is the circumstances. What is the chance that the person will be dangerous and end up hurting somebody?
Suppose the chances are high that the person will hurt somebody and that they're dangerous. In that case, you can bet your bottom dollar that the prosecutors will argue vehemently that there should be a bail deviation. The bail should be hiked up as high as possible so the person cannot escape.
When it comes to these types of issues, I have the client or the client's family come in—if the client is not available. We review everything and make the best argument for bail based on our own facts. We argue that there should not be a bail deviation and that the client should be released on a reasonable bail.
There's always a good argument that someone should receive a reasonable bail when it comes to these circumstances, and that's the argument we're going to make. And suppose we can bring to bear family in the courtroom, show the person has a good job, has a good reputation in the community, has never acted with any violence before, has never fled the jurisdiction of the court before, has no failures to appear. In that case, we will have a solid argument to block the bail deviation from occurring.
