On January 6, three May Law attorneys appeared in the Fairfax Courts. We had a bond motion appeal in the Fairfax Circuit Court, traffic cases in the Fairfax General District Court, and a divorce trial in the Fairfax Circuit Court.
The bond motion was an appeal from the General District Court which had denied our motion yesterday, ordering our client held in jail without bond on charges of Attempted Rape, Aggravated Sexual Battery, and Animate Object Sexual Penetration. Fortunately, the Circuit Court judge thought differently, set bail at $30,000, and ordered our client released. This makes things so much easier for everyone.
It is good that a person accused of a crime has the ability to have at least three judges consider whether he is to be released pending trial or kept in jail. (The three judges are the magistrate, the General District Court judge and the Circuit Court judge. In some cases it is worth appealing bond decisions to the Court of Appeals in Richmond). It is also a good lesson that one should should not let setbacks in the course of litigation cause one to give up.
In the General District Court, another of our lawyers oversaw some traffic cases — DUI and Reckless Driving. Interestingly, there are approximately 5 DUI cases per courtroom in Fairfax, per day. (There are 5-6 traffic courtrooms with traffic cases on most days in that county). Of the these 5 cases per courtroom, only one DUI will actually go to trial on most days. Today was no exception.
In the civil side of the Circuit Court, yet another May Law attorney was winning a contested divorce. The other side was asking for things that the Court could not grant in part because she failed to file necessary pleadings. This is a good example of a situation where one needs a good, competent attorney whenever going in to court.