Hi, I’m a federal defendant currently on presentencing release and have a question about the possibility of getting my pretrial release conditions modified. I know I can’t get any definitive answers and will consult my lawyer as well but wanted to get some basic information before I do so.
Without getting into to many details me and fiancé were both detained on a case together back in October 2019. Despite having a clean record the government sought detention and did get it, I spent 5 months in jail and was finally offered a plea agreement back in March 2020 pleading guilty to a lesser offense and was told that the government will allow me to go home on GPS location monitoring because there is less of a flight risk with my charge being so reduced (a class E felony that carries 0 to 3 years in prison). Me and my fiancé were in the same jail and the jail allowed inmates to write to each other so for those 5 months we would send letters to each other on a daily basis with no issue. The day after I signed my plea agreement that changed and the letter I sent came back saying there is a no contact in place. I had my guilty plea hearing the next day so figured I would wait until then and ask my lawyer about it.
Turns out now that I had plead guilty I was technically a witness against my fiancé since she still had not agreed to any plea deal and was technically still pre trial and if she went to trial I would be forced to testify against her. Part of my pre trial or pre sentencing release conditions was that I do not have any sort of contact with witnesses or victims of the crime including my fiancé. It’s been 6 weeks since I’ve been released and things have been going well, I am still awaiting my first PSI but have complied with all the conditions of my release and even found a job. I communicate with my fiancé’s father on a daily basis but don’t send any communication through him or anything of that nature, just checking in on her and making sure she knows I’m not going anywhere and staying through this with her. Today when I talked to him she had finally gotten a plea agreement she was willing to sign and accept. Hers is a bit worse since she had a bigger role in our crime but her charge was also greatly reduced and her guidelines but her at 36 to 48 months so 3 to 4 years. The government did not allow her to go on pre sentencing release like me so she is still stuck in jail but no longer going to trial so to speak, we have both plead guilty at this point. My question is whether it is possible to get the conditions of my release changed so she can call me from jail and we can talk since we are no longer witnesses against each other, the case is pretty much done and we are both awaiting sentencing.
According to her dad she was told by her lawyer and there is no “no contact” order against us and we can even get married at the jail if we wanted to which I would very much like to and it’s something we discussed in letters while both in the county jail; before she gets sent off to federal prison. The only thing preventing us from talking is the fact that it’s a condition of my release and if I violate I will go back to jail until sentencing and probably destroy my chances at getting probation which my lawyer thinks is a very good possibility. She has no such condition so it is completely one sided and only I can’t talk to her which seems odd to me. Is there a way to go about changing the conditions of my release so that we can talk on the phone and possibly get married? I know there is the whole we are both felons thing right now but the court has allowed me to live with a convicted felon since we lost our apartment while sitting in county jail for 5 months and I had no place to go other then my parents house and one of them is a convicted felon from many years ago, if they are willing to let me live with a felon I don’t see what the problem would be with me just speaking to one especially since she is my fiancé and we are co defendants but no longer potential witnesses against each other due to both of us pleading guilty and just awaiting sentencing now.
Sorry for the long post but thought I’d try to explain the situation as well as I can so you all have the entire back story. Any advice will be greatly appreciated, thanks.
Without getting into to many details me and fiancé were both detained on a case together back in October 2019. Despite having a clean record the government sought detention and did get it, I spent 5 months in jail and was finally offered a plea agreement back in March 2020 pleading guilty to a lesser offense and was told that the government will allow me to go home on GPS location monitoring because there is less of a flight risk with my charge being so reduced (a class E felony that carries 0 to 3 years in prison). Me and my fiancé were in the same jail and the jail allowed inmates to write to each other so for those 5 months we would send letters to each other on a daily basis with no issue. The day after I signed my plea agreement that changed and the letter I sent came back saying there is a no contact in place. I had my guilty plea hearing the next day so figured I would wait until then and ask my lawyer about it.
Turns out now that I had plead guilty I was technically a witness against my fiancé since she still had not agreed to any plea deal and was technically still pre trial and if she went to trial I would be forced to testify against her. Part of my pre trial or pre sentencing release conditions was that I do not have any sort of contact with witnesses or victims of the crime including my fiancé. It’s been 6 weeks since I’ve been released and things have been going well, I am still awaiting my first PSI but have complied with all the conditions of my release and even found a job. I communicate with my fiancé’s father on a daily basis but don’t send any communication through him or anything of that nature, just checking in on her and making sure she knows I’m not going anywhere and staying through this with her. Today when I talked to him she had finally gotten a plea agreement she was willing to sign and accept. Hers is a bit worse since she had a bigger role in our crime but her charge was also greatly reduced and her guidelines but her at 36 to 48 months so 3 to 4 years. The government did not allow her to go on pre sentencing release like me so she is still stuck in jail but no longer going to trial so to speak, we have both plead guilty at this point. My question is whether it is possible to get the conditions of my release changed so she can call me from jail and we can talk since we are no longer witnesses against each other, the case is pretty much done and we are both awaiting sentencing.
According to her dad she was told by her lawyer and there is no “no contact” order against us and we can even get married at the jail if we wanted to which I would very much like to and it’s something we discussed in letters while both in the county jail; before she gets sent off to federal prison. The only thing preventing us from talking is the fact that it’s a condition of my release and if I violate I will go back to jail until sentencing and probably destroy my chances at getting probation which my lawyer thinks is a very good possibility. She has no such condition so it is completely one sided and only I can’t talk to her which seems odd to me. Is there a way to go about changing the conditions of my release so that we can talk on the phone and possibly get married? I know there is the whole we are both felons thing right now but the court has allowed me to live with a convicted felon since we lost our apartment while sitting in county jail for 5 months and I had no place to go other then my parents house and one of them is a convicted felon from many years ago, if they are willing to let me live with a felon I don’t see what the problem would be with me just speaking to one especially since she is my fiancé and we are co defendants but no longer potential witnesses against each other due to both of us pleading guilty and just awaiting sentencing now.
Sorry for the long post but thought I’d try to explain the situation as well as I can so you all have the entire back story. Any advice will be greatly appreciated, thanks.
