Guilty But Free On Bond?

The anticipation is the worst part of being a defendant in a criminal case.  You are supposed to have a court hearing within three days of your arrest, but those are the longest three days of your life.  If you plead not guilty, then every piece of news that reaches you during pretrial discovery brings temporary relief during what is otherwise an excruciating wait, even if the court upholds your right to a speedy trial.  The worst part, though, is the silence after the jury returns from the deliberation room and before they deliver the verdict.  Of course, if the verdict is “guilty,” then things only get worse.  You might have to wait days, weeks, or even months before your sentencing hearing.  You don’t get to start your sentence immediately and get into adaptive coping mode where you think of it as getting closer to finishing your sentence.  All of these waiting periods are more bearable if you are free to go on with your life until your next court date, instead of being behind bars.  To find out more about when defendants can post bail and go free during a pending criminal case, a Tampa white collar crime lawyer.

You Don’t Have to Be a Celebrity to Stay Free on Bond After Your Conviction

Kisean Anderson, better known by his stage name Sean Kingston, was convicted of theft by deception in connection to an operation where he defrauded businesses out of luxury items.  His mother Janice Turner was a co-defendant in the same case; they both pleaded not guilty and received their convictions by jury verdict.  The court scheduled their sentencing for June 2025.

In the meantime, the court ordered Turner to remain detained until her sentencing, because the judge believed that Turner would flee if she were released from jail before her sentencing.  Meanwhile, it set Anderson’s bond at $100,000 and gave him a deadline of several days in which to pay it.  Anderson missed the original deadline and was briefly detained, but he paid the bond money the next day and was released.  He must remain on home detention until his sentencing hearing.

You might think that, if a celebrity like Sean Kingston could not pay his bail money and ended up back in jail, you have little hope of paying yours, but do not be so sure.  Most people do not post the full bond amount out of their own funds.  A more common solution is to pay a portion of the bond money to a bail bond company; then the bail bond company pays the full bond amount to the court.  Bond money is refundable, so when you appear for your next court date, you get back the bond money you paid, and if you paid a bail bond company, it gets its money back.

Contact Tampa Criminal Defense Attorney Bryant Scriven

A criminal defense lawyer can help you avoid being detained while your case is pending.  Contact Scriven Law in Tampa, Florida to schedule a consultation.

Sources:

wsvn.com/entertainment/sean-kingston-released-from-custody-in-federal-wire-fraud-case-after-posting-100k-bond/

local10.com/news/local/2025/04/15/singer-sean-kingston-in-custody-in-miami-after-failing-to-come-up-with-100k-cash-bond/