Arraignment Process

Answer:

At an arraignment, two things will happen. First, you’re going to be informed of the charges against you and a bond will be set. In Texas, especially in Bexar County, arraignment is usually done at the time of the arrest. You’re taken downtown and a judge informs you of the charges, and they set a bond. Occasionally, arraignment will happen in the courtroom itself, where someone is given notice to appear or they know there’s a charge, so they turn themselves in. There are advantages to doing it that way. If you know that there are charges pending against you, what you should do is contact a lawyer because there are ways to process you at the courthouse where you don’t spend a day in the jail. What we can do is turn you in at the courthouse. The judge will arraign you, set a bond, and we’ll take you down into the basement of the courthouse and you can be out in two hours as opposed to all day if you are arrested and arraigned at the JP Court or at the municipal court.