When a parent hears that his child is in jail for committing a crime, he must take time to recover from the shock. There might be thousands of questions in your head at the moment; as to what happened? How was your kid involved? Is he physically fine? You need to be calm and composed and keep those quarries aside for some other time. Right now, you need to work with a single objective, and that is to take your child out of custody as soon as possible. Continue reading the article to learn about the whole process of juvenile arrest and how you can help your child get back to normalcy.
The Arrest: An officer can always conduct a search in regard to a case with a search warrant. Before the search begins, you can legally ask to see and inspect the warrant. Searches can be of three types:
- Body Searches: The officer can, without a warrant, perform frisking (“pat down”) for, weapons, or illegal/stolen goods. These searches can be conducted only when there is reasonable suspicion that one is concealing a weapon or illegal goods, and have to be authorized by the supervising officer on duty.
- Home Searches: If a teenager is arrested from their home, a search is to be conducted without a warrant only to prevent the destruction of evidence. While searching the home they can seize anything they believe is evidence and can be used in court later on.
- Car Searches: Especially during arrests for driving without a license, DUI or drug possession, the teenager’s car and trunk can be searched without consent or warrant to check for illegal or stolen goods. The police can seize any object as evidence. It is recommended to cooperate with the officer on duty and answer only when spoken to.
Bail Service: After a teenager is arrested, they are taken into custody at a juvenile facility. Once you receive the call about their arrest, you should immediately arrange for a lawyer and contact a reliable bondsman to arrange for bail, if required.
- If you are allowed to speak to the child, calm them down and ask them not to answer anything until you and the attorney arrives. Children of 15 years of age or younger must be allowed to talk to a lawyer before giving up their Miranda rights or talking to the officer on duty.
- A parent might be allowed to be present during the interview or might not; it is usually at the officer’s discretion. If you are in California, look for bail bondsmen in Sacramento to help you with attorney referrals as well.
Bail bonds will help get a speedy release, ensuring the child not missing school or their daily activities. Usually, in California, the court will consider the crime committed by a minor as a ‘misdemeanor’ that can be expunged from the record later. As a parent, you must provide your child with a bright future and protect them from emotional and psychological scars.