Q: My brother was arrested for attempting to steal a motor vehicle. He got house arrest for 11.5 months. About four months in, he freaked and cut his bracelet off with a hacksaw and went drinking. He turned himself in two days later when his wife wouldn’t let him in the house. (Millvale, PA)

A: There is too little information here to give a thoughtful answer. I don’t know his prior record, whether he was charged for escape for cutting off his collar, whether the trial judge for the auto case revoked his bond, etc. My thought is that the trial judge revoked his bond and is going to let him sit a while and see if he is charged with escape for absconding house arrest. Turning himself in never hurts. If my assumptions are correct, I do not think the trial judge will reward him by granting a motion for him to return to house arrest again or alternative housing for the holidays. It may be Christmas in jail for your brother. He should ask his lawyer.