Describe How It Is Decided Whether or Not to Grant Bail to a Person Awaiting Trial

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Bail, if granted, entitles the defendant to remain free until the next stage of the case against him. The starting point is that there is a presumption of bail. This means that the police and courts must grant bail and release the prisoner unless there are good reasons not to do so. If the defendant is not granted bail he will be kept in custody. There are some circumstances where this right to bail does not apply. Both the police and the magistrates can grant bail and, in both cases, conditions. For police bail, condition might be to report back to the station, obey a curfew, not to re-offend, to stay away from a certain place or person(s), or to appear in court at a later date. They can also ask for a financial guarantee to ensure the suspect returns to attend court. The police may also release a suspect on bail without charge as long as they inform the suspect of the offence which is alleged against them. The Police Detention and Bail Act 2010 redefined the way they in which the limit of 96 hours on the period someone must be either charged or released. The Criminal Justice Act 2003 made alterations to provisions relating to the charging of offenders at the police enquiry stage. Normally a suspect would be the responsibility of the custody officer under PACE. The 2003 Act recognises that the Crown Prosecution Service is now often a participant in the charging process in that they often advice on the nature of the charge and the adequacy of the evidence. This means that if, at any time whilst the defendant is in detention, the CPS says there is sufficient evidence to bring charges, and they will advise the police accordingly. In addition, if the custody officer is awaiting a charging decision by the CPS, then the police will usually grant bail providing there are no reasons why bail should be granted. The 2003 Act has in effect made practical amendments to

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