** - My explanation on my HORROR at the idea of going to Jail

THIS POST MAKES MORE SENSE IF YOU READ THE PREVIOUS POST What a Day FIRST.

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I have always handled myself relatively calmly in the exact same situation in the past. I mean what good does it really do to struggle. Then you just end up in a worse situation because they start tacking on things like "Resisting Arrest," "Failure to Comply," etc. And then, should your initial charges turn out to be nothing, as was the case with me.... because I truly hadn't DONE anything, you're stuck because you've made you situation into something where there was originally nothing.

And I CANNOT describe to you what going to jail does to me mentally and emotionally. I fight for the purpose of staying WITH my Children. My whole purpose in the part I played in past incidents was to KEEP MY Children WITH ME. SO to then be taken away from them is very traumatic for me. Jail is not prison. Jail is not the end of the world. However, let me tell you what Jail IS. It is a place where once you are there, you have almost NO control over what happens to your life next. The Sheriff's Department, Lawyers, etc... Basically the "System" now controls you life.

And I understand this.... for the reason of enforcing the law, this makes sense.

But here is what happens. An Officer of the Law decides you need to be taken into custody for whatever reason. At that point your only real option is compliance whether they are right or wrong. They come up with a "reason" for why they are taking you into custody, and from this point on, it is your whole purpose in life to either accept this, or attempt to prove them wrong. Then the time continuum becomes part of the Twilight Zone. If you are arrested on a weekday (besides Friday) chances are you will go to court the next day to hear from the judge what you are being charged with. However, the Judge may call in the next day and that means you will not go until the day after that. If you are unfortunate enough to be arrested on a Friday, Saturady or Holiday... well, you get to wait until court is in session next. Meanwhile, you are NOT guaranteed a phone call. The whole thing about "My One Phone Call," is all movie generated. If they are busy or cranky in the booking area, you are just SOL. Meanwhile you are in a Holding Cell.... or basically the first of many stages of a Purgatory like existence. Once you are booked into jail (fingerprinted, mug shots, etc.) which can take HOURS, they have you change into "their" clothes (which means removing EVERYTHING you were already wearing including underwear or Garments (In FRONT of a guard of the same gender). Then, they send you to your cell. And at that point there are NO phones except the kind that require either a calling card or for you to make a collect call.

A calling card can only be acquired by filling out a request on paper, PLUS this can only be done if you either came in with money or someone puts money in your "account".... You get the chance once a day to do this (fill out the request). And if you have missed that chance, you have to wait to fill out your request until the next day. After you turn in the request, it takes approx. 1 day to get the calling card. So, for the first 24 to 48 hours, you have 2 options if you want to contact ANYONE: Beg calling card usage off of someone who has been there long enough to have one.... who you prolly have never seen before in your life, or be lucky enough to have someone who you can call collect.... which is expensive through their system ($50 for 15 minutes).

They will let you know if the Bail request you filled out upon entering the Jail has been granted, and how much that bail is.... when they get around to it. But in order for anyone on the outside to get the information you either have to call them (via the methods already discussed) or they have to periodically check in with the Jail. If you are one of the lucky few who came into the jail with over $50 (or an ATM/Debit Card), this is easy... and you might get to go home immediately. If you have to, you can call a Bondsman, and if you already have the amount of $ the Bondsman requires to help you, your home free until your decided court date (they will tell you this as you leave).

They will let you know when you are going to court... when they get around to it. But in order for anyone on the outside to get the information you either have to call them (via the methods already discussed) or they have to periodically check in with the Jail.

Once you get to court...for some it is a day, for others, Yes, it can actually be a week or more depending on your circumstances... You then are presented with your charges, what they mean and allowed to plead guilty or not. It is actually easier to plead guilty that not. Once you have plead guilty, you are sentenced, and you leave the court to either go back to jail to fulfill you sentence, or home. If you plead NOT Guilty, you then have to go through whether you can provide your own attorney, or if you need one appointed to you through the State. Then they have to set Bail until your next court date. This is actually the most painful part. You see, although you are "Innocent until proven Guilty," they base your bail amount on how likely you are to run or how big of a threat they believe you pose to society between the present and your next court date. You are then taken back to Jail until your Bail is paid to the court by either you (or someone representing you) or a Bondsman. That can be a matter of hours, days, or weeks.

Of course, the biggest reasons for the amount of trauma this situation causes me are that I am not one who is fortunate enough to have the $50 + available to me on the spot, and some major effort goes into acquiring the amount required to Bail me out as well as getting me a calling card. And the fact that I am isolated from My Husband and Children until further notice.