# A letter from court?



## Jakov (Dec 4, 2018)

A character in my book received two letters from court. One where they inform her about a hearing and the second one where they trialed her _in absentia_, does someone have an example or some suggestions for these letters (about the "legal" language). All suggestions are welcome.


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## Ralph Rotten (Dec 4, 2018)

I just googled "notification of trial en absentinia" and selected IMAGES and got a whole buncha pics of actual legal docs.

Google is wise.


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## Winston (Dec 9, 2018)

That notice was for a traffic violation, and the penalty was a fine. Note at the bottom that, if the fine is not paid, it will be referred to collections.  It cannot be escalated to a criminal offence.   
It is my understanding that, if you are subject to any form of imprisonment, you cannot be tried in absentia.


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## Olly Buckle (Dec 9, 2018)

According to Wiki  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trial_in_absentia  it varies quite a lot from country to country, so for example in the US it is deemed unconstitutional if you may be subject to imprisonment, but they quote Zambia as requesting a deportation from Belgium of someone sentenced to death in his absence. Where they are and the seriousness of the crime/punishment appear to be major factors.


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## Ralph Rotten (Dec 10, 2018)

You can indeed be tried en absentenia in America, but there are provisos beforehand.
I have heard judges warn defendants, as part of their conditions of release on bail, that if they fail to show for trial, they may be tried en absentenia. 

And yes, the sample I posted above was only a traffic ticket. I was simply illustrating the wealth of documents available via google.  At no time did I intend to do your research for you. :roll:


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## Guard Dog (Dec 10, 2018)

Do keep in mind that traffic tickets are "Citation in lieu of Arrest" folks.

Also, at least around here, papers concerning a criminal matter are served by a live person, whereas notices of civil matter can come to ya through the mail. ( Certified Mail. )

And the nastier the reputation of the person those criminal matter are concerning, the more likely the papers are to be served at 3:00am.





G.D.


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## Olly Buckle (Dec 11, 2018)

Guard Dog said:


> And the nastier the reputation of the person those criminal matter are concerning, the more likely the papers are to be served at 3:00am.
> 
> G.D.



Never say 'What do you want, filth?' , Rather say, 'Good evening, how can I help you officer?'


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