it or not. It was at that point that a
cop pulled me aside and told me
what I was in for.
The way the system works in
South Africa is that you’re arrested
and held in a cell at the police
station until your bail hearing. At
the hearing, the judge looks at your
case, hears arguments from the
opposing sides, and then he either
dismisses the charges or sets bail
and a trial date. If you can make
bail, you pay and go home. But
there are all sorts of ways your bail
hearing can go wrong: You get some
court-appointed lawyer who hasn’t
read your case and doesn’t know