Know Your Rights!

As a resident of any country is it extremely important to know your rights as designated by the country’s national legal documents. For the United States of America, the Constitution is the national legal document that governs the rights of U.S. residents. Perhaps the most iconic part of the Constitution is the Bill of rights, which grants all residents the same rights. It is important to understand all of these rights, but if you are someone who has committed a crime, there are two amendments that are essential to know.

The first one is that of the Fifth Amendment. This amendment covers a lot of detail about what rights a perpetrator of a crime has. Let’s begin by breaking down a few parts of this amendment. The first part of it states that “No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise, infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury…” this means that even when someone has committed a heinous crime, they still get the right to a trial. The next part states that “nor shall any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy…” this means that someone cannot be charged for the same crime twice. The final part of this amendment that will be discussed states that, “nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself” which means that someone has the right to not incriminate one’s self. This final part is often why people “plead the fifth” when they are being arrested.

The second amendment of importance is the Eighth Amendment (the history of this amendment has been covered in a previous blog post). The Eighth Amendment states that “Excessive bail shall not be required…” which means that when bail is set, it must be done so in a manner that is fair to the convicted. This keeps it to where a judge is not able to set an unrealistic bail. This amendment is one of the reasons that bail bonds are so helpful! By keeping bail at a reasonable amount, many different types of people can seek the assistance of a bail bondsman.

Here at Dennis Blackwell Bail Bonds, we make sure that our 24-hour bail bonds are an option! Visit our website to learn more about bail bonds in Colorado Springs and bail bonds in Pueblo CO!

Quotations of the amendments taken from the Constitute Project page.