On Saturday, representatives from the San Diego Sheriff's Department announced they arrested a man believed to be responsible for a the shooting deaths of a woman and two brothers that took place last Christmas Eve.

The 29 year-old suspect, identified as Carlo Mercado was arrested at his Mira Mesa home and was booked into the San Diego Central Jail.

As of late last night, his booking sheet indicated he was being charged with three counts of first degree murder.  The bail amount for each of these charges remained at $0.

This is not an unusual occurrence for a defendant who has been charged with homicide.  In fact, it's likely bail will not even be considered until Mercado is arraigned on Wednesday morning.

Although his attorney is likely to argue the defendant has ties to the community and does not pose a danger to the general public, based on the nature and severity of these types of charges, the judge is expected to do one of two things.

If Mercado is granted bail bonds, the amount is likely to be set in the millions of dollars, which would make it nearly impossible for his family to hire a San Diego bondsman.

If bail is set very high, not only would the family need to pay 10% to purchase bail bonds, they'd also need to provide full collateral (likely in the form of real property) in order to guarantee the defendant's appearance in court.   If Mercado were released and decided to skip the country those properties would be forfeited.

Or, if the District Attorney decides to seek the death penalty, the defendant will be held without bail.  In the state of California, the only time a person can be denied pre-trial release is if they are facing the death penalty.

In a Monday press conference, San Diego Police Department Chief Shelley Zimmerman said there was strong probable cause that the suspect was connected to the murders.  Authorities also point out that one day after the third victim's body was found inside an abandoned car in Riverside County, Mercado was arrested on an Interstate-5 Border Patrol checkpoint.

He was eventually charged with possession of a silencer, possession of a concealed weapon, possession of an assault rifle and possession of a large capacity magazine.

Court records show he pled guilty to one felony count on June 4 for possession of a silencer as part of a plea agreement.  He was scheduled to be sentenced early next month.

Read the full story here:  Lieutenant:  'Substantial Probable Cause' Links Suspect To Triple Murder