Stafford County Robbery Arraignments

Anytime a person is facing robbery charges, there are several factors that go into determining if the person is a flight risk or a danger to the public. A judge will examine several factors when they are making decisions during Stafford County robbery arraignments.

If you are being charged with robbery, and are unsure of what the next steps are for building a defense, it is important to speak with a dedicated robbery defense attorney.

Important Factors that Can Influence a Judge

There are several factors that judges look for in robbery arraignments that help them make a decision. If a person is arrested on a warrant, their arraignment is going to take place is General District Court. If a person is arrested as the result of an indictment, they are going to be arraigned in the circuit court. At an arraignment for a robbery, a judge is going to let the defendant know that they have a right to have an attorney. Usually, shortly thereafter, a judge may consider whether they are going to be admitted to bail. The most important factors are going to be whether the judge considers that person to a danger to themselves or to others and whether they are at risk of fleeing.

Flight Risks

Anytime someone is charged with robbery, they are charged with something serious that potentially cause them to go to prison for years. When someone is faced with that kind of penalty, judges are often going to assume that there is no way to get a person to come to court, and accordingly, hold them without any kind of bail or bond.

Dangers to the Public

In the context of robbery, a judge is going to be worried about the person committing other violent acts. Alleged to have already committed one violent act, the judge is going to have a concern that the person may commit another robbery or some other kind of violent crime because they have done it once before.

Differences in Robbery Arraignment

Every kind of crime involves certain commonalities of the arraignment phase. The things that they have in common are that the person is going to be advised of the right counsel and not too long thereafter they will have their bond considered. The difference with robbery is that it is a charge where the court under Virginia law must presume that a person should not get bond unless the attorney can rebut that presumption and convince them of that they should. With this kind of serious crime, it is more difficult to get a bond and that there are very particular kinds of evidence and arguments that an attorney will use. It is important to have an experienced counsel at that phase. They can make a difference as to whether the person is going to be free while waiting for their case to be tried or whether the person is going to be waiting in jail.

Requirements and Conditions

The requirements and conditions for robbery differ from what one typically sees in Stafford County courts. If a person is released, pending trial on a robbery charge, there is going to be a significant level of supervision. There are going to be additional requirements in terms of pre-trial supervision as well as in terms of ordering the defendant to stay away from any alleged victims. With this kind of serious crime, even the slightest violation of pretrial bond conditions or conditions of pretrial release is going to result in that bond being revoked.

Hiring an Attorney

At the early phases of the arrest process when a person is being advised of their right to counsel and bond is being determined, an attorney can assist by helping their client to get bond, by making the best arguments to have them be free on bond, and by making an argument to have the amount of the bond set as low as possible.

If you have been charged with robbery you will need legal representation to start building a strong defense case against the robbery offenses. It is imperative that in the early stages of the arrest process you consult a robbery lawyer who can negotiate and advocate on your behalf.