Legal Question in Criminal Law in South Carolina

Re: Bond Hearing

Believe it or not, neither the South Carolina Code nor the South Carolina Rules of Criminal Precedure has a provision stating how long a person can be held before a bond hearing is set. Generally, a person will have a hearing immediately, or withing a few days. The best thing to do, is to contact a lawyer who can then file a motion with the court for an immediate hearing. Sometimes if the circumstances are right, its possible for the defense attorney and the Solicitor's (South Carolina's version of a prosecutor) office to agree on a bond amount, in which case, they sign a consent order, then have a judge approve and sign, which will then allow an immediate release. For a certain limit number of crimes, such as capital murder, a person is not intitled to a bond hearing, as the state has the right to deny bond entirely until the individual goes to court.