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Original poster

Police and Bail

20 replies

OnBail · 08/03/2015 18:15

I am hoping somebody can answer my question for me.

There is a huge backstory but basically my stepson lives with me and DP. At Christmas he was arrested for assualt on is girlfriend but was released without charge due to no evidence or injurys on her.

He was told to stay away from her but as you cant teach stupid, he got back with her and was again arrested last week for assault on her.

He was bailed and has to report to back to the station next week, he has not been charged with anything yet.

His bail conditions mean he cannot go out between certain hours and is bailed to our address.

We do not know what he was arrested for as he wont tell us and we didnt know that he was on a curfew.

In the past week we have had the police round 3 times to check that stepson is in the house (normally around 5.30am). Can the police do this? Is it normal to continaully check up on a person who is on bail but has not been charged?

We have younger children in the house and the visits wake them up. We only moved to this house a few months ago and have had the police round 5 times, I am sure the neighbours think we are drug dealers or something.

We cannot make stepson leave yet until he reports back to the police station and hopefully the charges will be dropped, he will then be asked to move out.

There is a lot more to this, but I am fed up of the 5.30 wake up calls when the rest of the house has done nothing wrong.

OP posts:

LaurieFairyCake · 08/03/2015 18:19

I'm surprised youve not been told what crime he's been bailed for since he's living with you

Shesparkles · 08/03/2015 18:22

If someone is on curfew bail then the police have every right to check they haven't broken that curfew. I appreciate its very hard on the rest of the family, but had there been no suspicion that a crime has been committed, and unfortunately not for the first time, then he wouldn't be on a curfew bail. He can report to the police station at any time to request a change of bail address, it doesn't have to be at his signing on time

Original poster

OnBail · 08/03/2015 18:23

Laurie, stepson is 21 so is an adult. Unfortunately the police cannot disclose anything to us and as stepson is a shady shit he wont tell us, goes quiet and goes upstairs. I think he was arrested for damage to her car but again we dont know.

OP posts:

TracyBarlow · 08/03/2015 18:26

You can kick him out if you want to (not sure of you want to or not.) He would have to go to court to vary his bail conditions if he changed his address but that's not really your problem.

The police are within their rights to visit at 5.30am. They come then because it's their quietest time. You could ask them to maybe come at a different time because of the small children but this may just raise their suspicions.

fixedit · 08/03/2015 18:27

Surely you have the right to know especially having younger children in the house.

TracyBarlow · 08/03/2015 18:28

Apols, Shesparkles is correct, it's police bail not court bail so he'd ask them to change the address, not the court.

Original poster

OnBail · 08/03/2015 18:30

I would have

OP posts:

Original poster

OnBail · 08/03/2015 18:32

Sorry phone is playing up, I would have kicked him out months ago but Dp is a soft touch. He was homeless when he came to stay with us, nobody else would put him up. He has a job now so can afford a house share so he us out if my house as soon as possible.

OP posts:

Shesparkles · 08/03/2015 18:36

Sorry you're going through this OP, hopefully his father will stop being a soft touch so your stepson can face up to the reality of what he's done, it can't be easy for you

BCBG · 09/03/2015 23:18

Hi OP, your ss is on police curfew so he has to be subject to doorstep checks as police have no power to tag - if he appears in court then he will probably be placed on a tagged curfew which is electronically monitored. As other posters have said, if his bail address is not suitable then he can find another one and notify the police in advance of moving there to get their consent. Bail address is not suitable if you and DP withdraw your consent. Just a thought

Bumpedbonce · 26/03/2015 00:39

Another option is to contact the station and complain about you all being disturbed and ask for the officers to call your stepson to get him to present himself at the door

Butterflywings168 · 28/03/2015 18:43

Police harassment turning up multiple times at your place at 5.30am.
Police are not to be trusted, do not protect and in fact are the danger.

Bumpedbonce · 29/03/2015 05:59

It is not harassment, bail conditions are only issued in order to protect a victim or prevent and offence. If the suggestion I made is taken up then no one else in the house will be disturbed

Redglitter · 29/03/2015 22:34

Great advice there Butterfly

PoundingTheStreets · 29/03/2015 22:41

Your stepson obviously has bail conditions which include not contacting his X/GF and to live/reside/sleep at a certain address between specified hours and to present himself to a police officer on request at that address at any point during those hours. This means the police are well within their rights to come to your home and disturb you, and if they believe it is necessary to protect a vulnerable person (e.g. your stepson's X/GF) they will do so at very inconvenient times.

I understand your frustration completely. But if you want to change things, you need to prevent your stepson from using your address as a bail address.

I sympathise. Your caught between a rock and a hard place.

Original poster

OnBail · 02/04/2015 09:28

A small update if anyone is interested. We had the police round a couple more times, stepson went to his bail hearing and it was extended till yesterday (was about 3 weeks). We had the police round a couple of days later - stepson had been caught shoplifting, although Tesco didnt press charges they still informed the police. Stepson wasnt in when they called round.

We chucked him out, but he came back the next day as he was messaging DP, crying saying he was homeless and was sleeping on the streets. He came back but with conditions. He could only stay will the end of April where we would pay his first months rent on a house share, no more police at the door other than his bail and to stay away from his ex.

The next day I spotted him sat in the ex's car, he hasnt stayed away from her. But the amazing thing is that we had no visits from the police at all.

Stepson went off to his bail hearing yesterday, we heard nothing from him all day, he didnt come home. Then at 1.30am this morning the police were knocking at the door, stepson didnt turn up for his bail hearing, they had a car and a van to arrest him.

We still havent heard from him and dont know where he is. But he is out this time. Not to drip feed but nobody else will put him up because he is a thief and steals from everyone. And yes, he stole from my teenagers.

He is not coming back now, I dont care if he is on the streets. he does nothing to help himself.

OP posts:

TracyBarlow · 02/04/2015 13:40

What a mess for you an your poor family OnBail. I hope you at least get a bit of peace now he is gone. He's an adult. It's time he took care of himself I guess. If it helps, I see lots of people in his situation who are in and out of the courts and quite often they do, inexplicably, just decide to turn their lives around. Good luck.

tracyreader · 02/04/2015 14:58

How hard on you, my sympathies.

Coccoluv · 03/10/2024 06:53

Is there such this as being on tag but no tag to show…. I think I’m being lied to

Another2Cats · 03/10/2024 12:42

@Coccoluv it would really help if you started your own thread.

By "tag" do you mean something like Home Detention Curfew?

If they are on tag then they will have an electronic tag on their ankle and there will be a home monitoring unit in their home which sends signals back to the monitoring centre.

There are various different types of tags but they are always placed on the ankle.

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