Spending weeks, months, or years in jail can be disastrous, especially if you’re not guilty. State prisons in Utah, as well as the rest of the nation, are filled with inmates that have yet to be found guilty of a crime. Thoughts of being exonerated when the trial commences can be noble, but avoiding incarceration is ideal.
Posting Bail Is Always the Best Option
You can avoid spending even 24 hours in jail by posting bail or using the services of bail guarantors such as Beehive Bail Bonds. Utah is one of the strictest states when it comes to petty crimes and drug-related violations, but first-time offenders are usually given lower bond amounts. Minor violations will often amount to misdemeanors that require minimal to no jail time, but the waiting for the trial to start and its length can count for a long time spent in jail. Posting bail is always the best option as spending days in prison is both dangerous and traumatic.
Cooperate but Stay Silent
If the police approach you for whatever reason, do your best to cooperate. Police are required to have body cams, so the incidence of abuse is minimal, especially if you cooperate. Do not raise your voice, appear belligerent, or attempt to touch the arresting officer. These actions can bring about more charges or affect the setting of your bail bond. Be cooperative but stay silent and ask for a lawyer. No matter how friendly the cops are or how intimidating they get, do not talk without your lawyer present. Agreeing to plea deals can cut your time in jail, which lets you go back to providing for your family sooner. However, these pleas have repercussions that will affect the rest of your life. Some minorities opt for plea deals—even if they’re innocent— to avoid lengthy trials and partly because of their lack of faith in the judicial system.
Prison Life
Getting locked behind bars can change a person. Prisons are teeming with different gangs, leaving individual inmates with little choice but to join or face daily harassment and violence. People brought in for substance abuse can face dangerous withdrawal symptoms, relying on only the prison staff for medical help. Incidents of suicide and self-harm are almost unpreventable, and inmates with mental problems are undetected or left untreated. Incarceration can also threaten your livelihood, the security of your family, your housing, and even your relations with your friends and family. Being incarcerated comes with a stigma that won’t be removed even if you are eventually found innocent.
Substance Abuse and the Prison System
The majority of all inmates are held for drug-related crimes and substance abuse and related violations. These individuals are better treated in rehabilitation facilities, and being incarcerated is proven to do more harm than good. As long as the laws aren’t changed, addiction will continue to be treated as a crime and not a health problem or affliction. Substance abuse can incur stiff penalties in certain states, so it’s best to force loved ones into rehabilitation facilities rather than wait for the state to lock them up.
The prison system will change you, and it’s usually for the worst. Do everything that you can to stay away from illegal activities and always use the services of bail guarantors when you are charged with any offense. Even a short stint in jail can have serious repercussions, so do all that you can to avoid getting locked up.