I have a friend who was sentenced today on a very minor (and in my opinion, totally stupid) charge. This went through a full one-week trial with 26 witnesses. She was found guilty. She was sentenced to: ONE Day in Jail, and one year unsupervised probation.
She gets to choose and schedule her time in jail.
So I put it to the Teeming Millions:
What is the best 24 hour day to spend in jail? Check in/checkout times? 
Tuesday thru Thursday. Friday the weekend mayhem starts, and the judge doesn’t come in to do the catch & release process until Monday.
It depends on the jurisdiction, but it’s very unlikely she’ll spend an entire 24 hours in. Check in around suppertime, probably be cut loose after breakfast. This sounds like something her lawyer should be able to advise her on.
Monday thru Thursday nights would probably be most peaceful.
I am sure she and her lawyer have discussed it, I am not looking to advise her on when to do this (other than to get it over with as soon as possible).
The whole situation just got me wondering: if it were my sentence, would I want to be there Sunday night or Tuesday or when.?
I know I wouldn’t want Friday or Saturday, but other than that I am not sure. I have heard in other jurisdictions that the drug task force people like to do raids on Tuesdays for some reason or other (probably urban myth) and I figure Thursday is gearing up for the weekend. So Monday or Wednesday were probably best.
However, having only been in jail once for two hours while in college, I really have no idea about the dynamics there.
21st December.
What crime did she commit?
9400
Though I know nothing about the situation, for a trial that took a full week (around here, most 1st Degree murder cases take less than a week of trial time) with 26 different witnesses, (which must have cost the court system a shitloaf of money) it sounds like for being actually found guilty, she got off incredibly lightly, for whatever she was convicted of.
I was always under the impression that there was an unofficial penalty for “wasting” the courts time and money, and that someone found guilty at trial was dealt with much more severely than someone who took a plea-deal, saving the manpower and expense of a trial.
In the county I used to practice in it was it was advisable for misdemeanor defendants choosing to serve jail time to report no later than Thursday, because if they went in on Friday they couldn’t start earning “good time” credit until the following Monday and would flat time three days. If you had only one day to serve it pretty much didn’t matter when you went in so long as it wasn’t a late night on a weekend, it’s a “book in book out” procedure and would send one on one’s way in an hour or so. Nobody actually gives a crap about anyone spending 24 solid hours in jail; a defendant usually already has credit for at least one day just by simply being arrested. This is just the county I used to live in and applies nowhere else, mind you.
Whoa, yeah. A week and 26 witnesses? What did she do, shoot at the governor?
Tuesday or Wednesday. Mondays are rushed because of all the drunks getting out, and Fridays…well…that’s when the drunks come in. I have too much experience with friends in jail 
Tuesday would be the best day. Monday will still have people who were arrested on the weekend and waiting to go to court and be packed (and if its particularly busy, a big city or a city with a high crime rate, there could even be people waiting on Tuesday to go to court). So I’d say Tuesday and Wednesday are the best days, leaning towards Wednesday since you’ll beat the weekend “rush” since its only 24 hours.
I’m not proud, but I’ve been in jail a few times in my younger/dumber days, and unfortunately I always seemed to get arrested at the beginning of the weekend (everytime except once… and I got out about 3-4x quicker than the other times). Hope I’ve helped. Let me know if you’d like me get more specific. Again, I’m new to posting on the Dope, but been lurking for years. So go easy on me. 
You’ll be in there with a bunch of other “regular” folks, who just got drunk and a little out of control. It will dilute the otherwise hard-core element that regularaly inhabits the lock-up. In the event of a embroilio, you might get some help from those who don’t know any better, and don’t expect to be there too long. Counter-intuitive, but I think its valid. Of course, it depends on whos playing in what Bowls. Don’t want to miss any good ones.
Also: never leave your seat (if you get one) till dinner is served. Then, and only then, put your tray on your spot to get up to use the phone/toilet/whatever. All the rest are too busy eating to shark your spot. Let them snag the grub. And don’t eat that shit they give you if you are only going to be there for a day or two. Its fucking poison. Feign “Crazy”. You get your own spot.
I wish you, er, I mean “your friend” luck!
It would depend on what she may have scheduled, if she works regularly, a weekend would be best.
For misdemeanors, would someone be able to get a day in jail instead of fines? Or community service?
:eek: Not me. Promise.
She was convicted of lying to a peace officer. It is very convoluted and involves, at it’s base, a nasty child custody case. What it all boiled down to: She used the word “friend” instead of “boyfriend” and denied being in a relationship with one of the players in the custody case.
I really don’t think they were “in” a relationship at the time of the incident, that came later.
I, too, was astounded at the complete and utter waste of taxpayer money over this.
She is over 40 and the only “prior” on her record was a 15 year old negligent driving charge that was dropped. However, there are alot of agencies and players involved here (CPS, HHS, etc.), so maybe that had something to do with the overkill?
Does the jail post a weekly menu online, like some schools? I’d want to report in on make-your-own-taco night.
Depends. If it is a women’s prison, I would avoid that day if possible.
Regards,
Shodan
This sounds like an interesting story. Can you share any more of the details? Like how it was the police officer’s business whether the man was a friend or a boyfriend, and what that has to do with the custody case? Does she only get custody if she swears off men forever? 