{"id":1094,"date":"2023-01-17T11:46:02","date_gmt":"2023-01-17T11:46:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/prisonbeat.com\/?p=1094"},"modified":"2023-01-17T11:46:02","modified_gmt":"2023-01-17T11:46:02","slug":"what-surities-need-to-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/prisonpulse.ca\/staging\/uncategorized\/what-surities-need-to-know\/","title":{"rendered":"What Sureties need to know!"},"content":{"rendered":"

NOTE:<\/strong> This is a personal blog, any views or opinions represented in this blog belong solely to the CIFFConsulting Team. \u201cWE ARE NOT Psychologists or Therapy Professionals,\u201d all data and information on these blogs is for informational purposes ONLY. In the comments section we are hoping that people can outline their experiences and foster communication that will assist others going through similar events.<\/p>\n

ACTING AS A SURETY IS A SERIOUS MATTER!<\/strong>
\nA surety is someone who agrees to take responsibility for a person accused of a crime. Being a surety is a serious commitment. Before you accept this responsibility, here are a few things you should think about:
\nThink about getting independent legal advice to make sure you understand what this commitment means.
\nDo not agree to be a surety if you are not sure that you can supervise the accused person in the community.
\nIf the accused person fails to obey the terms and\/or conditions of the court order, you could lose the money you have pledged.
\nYour responsibility as a surety continues until the case is completely over. In some cases, this may take a long time.
\nAccepting a fee or being paid back in return for acting as a surety is against the law.<\/p>\n

Responsibilities of a Surety<\/strong>
\nMaking sure the accused person comes to court on time and on the right dates.
\nMaking sure that the accused person obeys each condition of the bail order, also known as a recognizance.
\nConditions may require the accused person to report to the police and obey a curfew. They may also order the accused to not possess weapons, drink alcohol and\/or communicate directly or indirectly with the victim or victim\u2019s family. This means that you as the surety are also not to communicate on behalf of the accused person with the victim or the victim\u2019s family.
\nIf you are accepted as a surety, you must sign the recognizance. It means that you agree to pay a specified amount of money if the accused person fails to obey the court order.<\/p>\n

Qualifications of a Surety<\/strong>
\nThe judge or justice of the peace will decide whether you are suitable to act as a surety. Qualifications of a surety will vary depending on the allegations or charges against the accused.
\nThe judge will look at your finances, personal character, and background. You may have to give evidence in court and be cross-examined about your qualifications.<\/p>\n

Ending Your Obligations as a Surety<\/strong>
\nYou may decide that you are no longer willing or able to supervise the accused person. In this case you have two options:
\n1. You may bring the accused to the court personally and ask that you be relieved of your responsibilities,
\n2. You may come to the court and apply in writing to the court to be relieved of your duties. The court will then issue an order for the arrest
\nof the accused person.<\/p>\n

If you believe the accused person is a threat to your safety, you should not attempt to bring the accused person back to court yourself. Once a court order is made, the police can arrest the accused and your obligations will be over.
\nFailure to Obey a Court Order
\nIf the accused person fails to appear in court or breaks any other term of the bail order, the accused person may be charged with another criminal offence.
\nIf the person is found guilty of breaching the court order, the Crown may ask the court to make you pay the money you committed as a surety. A hearing will be scheduled. You and the accused person will be given at least 10 days notice of the date and place of the hearing.
\nThe hearing is called escheatment. It will give you an opportunity to explain why you should not lose your money.
\nThe judge may order that you pay all, part, or none of your money.
\nFurther legal action may be taken against you to collect the amount owing.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Becoming a surety is a serious matter and this role puts plenty at stake for both the accused and the individual charged. It is important to know what you are getting into. Know your role and understand your responsibility.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1094","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/prisonpulse.ca\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1094","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/prisonpulse.ca\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/prisonpulse.ca\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/prisonpulse.ca\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/prisonpulse.ca\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1094"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/prisonpulse.ca\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1094\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/prisonpulse.ca\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1094"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/prisonpulse.ca\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1094"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/prisonpulse.ca\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1094"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}