Section 3.691 of the Florida Statutes allows a person that has been convicted of a crime to be released on bond pending an appeal. It is within the discretion of the Jacksonville trial court or the Florida appellate court as to whether the defendant should be released. The Jacksonville trial court must apply certain principles when making this decision. The factors that the could should look at include:
- the defendant's attachments to the community (Jacksonville);
- the defendant's family ties in the community;
- the defendant's business or job;
- the severity of the punishment; and
- any other relevant circumstances that would indicate whether or not the defendant is a flight risk.
The Jacksonville court should also consider whether denial of a post-conviction bail would render nugatory the right to an appeal. The court should not consider the fact that a defendant is facing a minimum mandatory prison sentence. Coolley v. State, 720 So. 2d 598 (Fla. 2nd DCA 1998).
The appeal must be taken in good faith. Good faith does not mean that there must be probable cause to believe the judgment will be reversed. The Defendant only needs to show that he or she is not appealing on grounds that frivolous. The grounds for the appeal must be fairly debatable. Baker v. State, 213 So. 2d 285 (Fla. 4th DCA 1968).
