How long will you spend in jail before being prosecuted? 51 Answers as of November 11, 2011

If a defendant is in custody, there are statutory time limits on each phase of the prosecution to ensure that it moves forward at a speedy pace and that no one languishes in jail. These time limits can be voluntarily waived by the defendant but this must be done on the record. So you need to speak to your husband and/or his attorney if you're worried. Every case is different. Some go very quickly, others can stretch out for years.

The state must bring a person to trial that is incarcerated within nine months. That time can be extended by the defense by asking for continuances or by the filing of certain motions.

If you are charged with a felony or a serious crime the judge will set a bail that some people cannot make. If you have a bad record, prior bench warrants, or are a threat to the community your bail will be very high. Those defendants must either put up property or a large amount of cash or sit in jail for a year until their case comes to trial. They often have public defenders who are too busy to get the case to trial sooner or are delaying the case as a way to get a better plea. I do not know the facts or circumstances of your case, but it usually takes a year to get to trial because of hearings, motions, and calendar congestion. If you want to plead guilty it would only take a few months, but if you request a trial you have to go through all the pre-trial motions and hearings to determine what evidence can be used at trial, what witnesses will be able to testify, what identifications will be admissible, what statements are admissible, and what previous convictions can be used against the defendant if he chooses to take the stand. Trials are very complex proceedings and the courts are very busy with criminal cases. You should retain a good criminal attorney to handle the case if you have a public defender.

Except in a serious case, like murder, the prosecution has six months to bring a case to trial where the top count is a felony and can only hold a person in jail for 90 days. However in computing the time, there are many exclusions. For example, if his attorney requests an adjournment, that time is excluded in computing "speedy trial" time. You need to speak to his attorney and find out why the delay.

Depending upon case postponements - and by whom - and what other cases are holding him, Rule 600 requires a trial or release on bond after 180 days in jail.

A defendant has a Constitutional right to a speedy trial. That is not always an exact period of time. However, in Maryland a person generally must be brought to trial within 180 days of his first appearance in the case. You should speak to your husband's attorney about the details of his situation.

In Colorado state court, he has a right to a speedy trial in six months. However, that right may be waived, but only for another another six months. The court may allow multiple waivers.

Your husband should request that his attorney file a demand for a speedy trial. The law requires that the case be scheduled for trial within 60 days from the date of the demand.

It depends on the charges and pretrial proceedings. If it's been his lawyer asking for time then it could go on for a long time.

Hard to say. Some cases take years. Chances are charges have already been filed, and bail has been set. Otherwise they couldn't keep him in custody. You need to contact an attorney about this.

If a person is in jail solelyfor the crime charged then 3 months is the maximum time for speedy trial. That can be extended if additional time is "charged" to the defendant such as the time between when a motion to dismiss is filed and when it is decided." Speedy trial calculations are very difficult in many cases.

Be careful with the words you use. Someone can only be held for 72 hrs without being arraigned. Being in jail for 6 months "without being prosecuted" only means that his case hasn't gone to trial. I'm sure he's been to court several times in those six months, and each time he has likely agreed to a Time Waiver in order to allow his attorney to attempt a settlement with the DA. If your husband doesn't understand this, then he should discuss this with his current attorney.

Well, first of all, depending on the charge, he may post bail. In that case he would be released. For the answer to that question, you would have to speak with your husband's lawyer or check with the jail he is in. Beyond that, a person in custody on a pending charge must be brought to trial within 60 days of his arraignment. However, that time can be extended when the defendant waives his speedy trial rights. So I can't really say how long he will be in jail pending trial without more information. The best source for release information is the jail in which he resides.

The amount of time anyone spends in jail waiting for trial varies greatly. Factors affecting waiting time include the following: Court congestion, seriousness of the charges, multiple defendants, attorney's schedule, prosecutor's schedule, Court's schedule, availability of witnesses, defense preparation, prosecution preparation, and many other issues. Advice: Contact your husband's lawyer and seek clarification on the above issues.

I don't have enough facts about his case to answer this question. I recommend that you consult with a competent defense lawyer asap and get some advice about the situation with all of the facts on the table.

That depends on so many things. It is not unusual that it will take several months or more to bring a case to conclusion.

He would have to be brought to trial within 180 days if he has been incarcerated the whole time. There are some exceptions such as if he was already in jail for something else or if he has waived his right to a speedy trial by asking for delays, adjournments, etc. He should consult with an attorney for a more detailed answer specific to his case.

I think one can safely assume that if your husband is incarcerated and has been for 6 months, he is being prosecuted. The question would be what stage of the prosecution.

The length of time a person spends in jail waiting for his trial depends on the facts of his case. Generally the more serous the crime the longer it takes to go to trial. Additionally the more complex the facts the longer it takes. Some murder trials have taken up to four years to come to trial with the defendant in jail all that time. Most cases will be over in three to 12 months.

It depends on many factors, most important among them are the charges that he's facing, and the reasons for the postponements in his case. For most felonies, speedy trial time is 6 months but there are many reasons why some of the time in jail may be excluded from that calculation, so the actual ime spent in jail can be much longer than that.

He has a right to a speedy trial within 120 days. That amount of time can be extended almost indefinitely if he or his attorney asks for continuances.

He has certain speedy trial rights (and speedy preliminary hearing rights on a felony case), so to go beyond those time frames requires his consent. On a misdemeanor, he had a right to go to trial within 30 days from his arraignment if he was in custody (or 45 days if he was out of custody at the arraignment) unless he waived time. On a felony, he had a right to a preliminary hearing within 10 court days of his first appearance unless he waived that right... if he did, he had a right to a preliminary hearing within 60 calendar days unless he waived that as well. After preliminary hearing, he goes back to court for a second arraignment within 2 weeks and from there, he would have a right to a speedy trial within 60 days of his second arraignment. To be in jail for 6 months means he has to have waived time at some point.

There are certain speedy trial rights that are frequently waived. If these rights are waived then there is no limit. If speedy trial rights were not waived then he would have began his trial on or before the 70th day in custody if it is a state court case.

It depends on many factors. Each jurisdiciton is different. The level of offense could factor in. Some case can take many months, even years.

If your husband has been in jail for six months, he is already being prosecuted. He may request a seedy trial which would require having a trial within sixty days from the omnibus hearing (pretrial) or from any speedy trial demand barring good cause for additional delay.

It depends mostly on the complexity of the case that your husband is held on. The more complicated the case or the more serious the case is the longer it is likely to take to get it to trial. Other things that can affect the ability of a case to go to trial could be the existence of a probation or parole sanction that the defendant may be serving or possible extradition issues with other jurisdictions. Finally, in custody defendants in Oregon (unless they are charged with murder, attempted murder or treason) have a right to have a trial within 60 days of arrest. Like many other rights, this right can be waived by the defendant or the statute also allows for the defense attorney or the DA to request an extension of the 60 days upon a showing of good cause. The 60 days is also tolled by any time in which the defendant is undergoing a psychological exam.

He'll stay in jail until his trial if he can't bond out. As for how long that might be he needs to ask his attorney. He should have had one appointed if he can't afford one.

It depends upon two factors: - what the charge is, and - how much the bond (if any) has been set. If your husband can't post the bond, or the judge has set no bond, then your husband could be sitting until trial or disposition. How long that takes is up to your husband, his attorney, and the prosecutor.

Well it appears that he has waived time for trial. He is now in a reasonable time period.

It all depends on the type of charges he is facing, how complex in case is and how busy his lawyer is. Every defendant has a constitutional right to a speedy trial. In California a defendant in a felony case has a statutory right to a trial within 60 calendar days following a preliminary hearing and arraignment (arraignment on the charging document after the preliminary hearing). In serious cases it is not uncommon for the defendant to wait time at the advice of his attorney so that the defense case may be properly investigated and prepared for trial. This may take 6 months, 1 year, or even 2 years or more in some cases. His attorney is the best person to advise your husband about his speedy trial right and the duration necessary to properly prepare the case.

It depends on the crime. A trial is supposed to be set, under speedy trial rules, within 6 months of when he plead not guilty to the crime. That hearing where he plead not guilty could be the third or fourth court appearance he makes, depending on the crime he is charged with.

It depends on if it is state or federal and the policy of the court. Check with his attorney or get a consultation with another for a second opinion.

Depends on the charges - if he is definitely going to jail as a result of his crime, he will get credit for the time is in jail awaiting trial. If he wants to get the matter over with more quickly, he should make a speedy trial motion.

He is being prosecuted or he has been convicted. You do not spend time in jail awaiting prosecution, but you may spend time in jail awaiting the procedures relating to the prosecution (specifically the trial).

If he or his lawyer have not done anything to cause any delays or agree to any delays, he may be eligible for release now.

It depends on what the charges are. It must be felonies I assume with that length of time. Does he have a bail set. Were there any other delays in his case such as Rule 11 proceedings. The State does have a time limit to prosecute someone, but there are many different things that can slow that process down.

He has a right to a trial within 60 days unless he agrees to extend the time for trial or unless the prosecutor gets the court to grant a continuance for good cause.

It depends on the nature of the case. Serious offenses may take longer than other cases to prepare for trial.

Depends on a lot of details. Many people are entitled to be released from jail within 60 days unless they are brought to trial, although a judge has significant discretion to find that there is 'good cause' to keep them in jail during that time.

This depends on what he is being charged with and whether or not he asserted his right to a speedy trial. For a misdemeanor you have the right to a trial within 30 days if you are in custody. If you are charged with a felony, you have a right to a preliminary hearing within 10 days.