Your loved one just posted bail for you and now you are free to go about your everyday life. While you’re waiting for your court date there are some mistakes that can easily land you back in jail that you will want to avoid.
If you got arrested for a crime that involved alcohol like a DUI, you may have an agreement where you have to avoid alcohol, or be required to undergo random drug testing to check for alcohol being in your system. However, if your arrest didn’t involve drugs or alcohol, it is still a good idea to avoid alcohol when on bail since alcohol reduces your judgement making you more likely to be arrested again while on bail. So it’s probably in your best interest to avoid the bars or you’ll be seeing those “bars” again soon.
While you are on bail, it may be in your best interest to avoid certain people. If someone was also involved in a crime that you are being accused of, the courts may restrain you from contacting them, especially if you tend to get into trouble with that person. Even if the courts don’t restrain you from contacting certain people, avoiding those certain people may help you in the long run from making a bad decision that will put you back into jail. However, you may be restrained from contacting someone because there is a no-contact order included in the bail conditions. Like if you were arrested for domestic violence, your significant other may request a no-contact order against you. Meaning you can not visit or contact them via text, phone, message, etc.… Not complying with a no-contact order is a sure way to get you to put back in jail.
Another thing you should not do while out on bail is quitting your job. If you quit your job you’ll have less money to put towards your defense, and many bail conditions include finding or keeping a job. Quitting your job right after you get released on bail shows the courts that you plan on fleeing the state or country. However, the courts will take into consideration your work history, like if you have a history of a lot of random jobs they won’t worry as much vs someone who suddenly quits their long term job.
Many people who are bailed out of jail have a cosigner, just like any other loan, your co-signer agrees to pay the loan if you can’t or you decide to skip out. So ignoring your cosigner just don’t do and take advantage of them, because it’s more likely they will be your support system and ensure you follow all conditions and that you actually attend all your hearings. And if you end up ignoring your cosigner they can go back to the bail bond agent and request to be removed, and without them, you’ll end up back in jail.
Obeying the law is fairly simple, but depending on the type of crime you committed you will have to follow certain conditions.
