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The Judges of each county set bail amounts for each offense and publish
a bail schedule.
When a person is arrested and booked into the jail a Deputy will utilize the bail
schedule
to determine the bail amount required for a defendant’s release.
A bail bond is an Insurance Policy that is posted
at the jail for the release of a person from custody.
The bond is held by the court and is guaranteed by the bail bond
company and the
individual(s) paying for bail (Indemnitor/Co-signer).
The bail bond agency guarantees to the court
that the defendant will appear in court
each and every time the Judge requires them to do so until the case is over.
How long before the defendant is released? The amount of time the jail takes to process
the bail bond varies
with the workload at the jail, the size of the jail, and many other
factors outside the control of the bail bond company.
Once the bail bond is posted
at the jail, they will contact you to advise the approximate timeline for the defendant’s
release. For security reasons, no jail facility will give an actual time for a person’s release.
Is there
a way to get a refund? Bail bond companies are not in the business of determining
if someone is right or wrong, it is
up to the court to make those decisions.
The job of the bail bond companies is to get you out quickly and insure a person’s
appearance in Court. Once the defendant is released from jail on the bail bond,
they have fulfilled thier obligation
and the full premium is earned.
If you have an Arrest or Bench Warrant, a bail bond company can help. they usually
have an excellent working relationship with local law enforcement. They can get you
the information you need and make
arrangements for posting a bond before surrendering
so that you will be out and on your way in as little time as possible.
In some cases (misdemeanor or traffic cases) it won’t cost you anything.
They will actually walk with you to
the Sheriffs' Department, arrange for your release
sometimes with only your signature, without going into custody at
no cost to you.
This is a free service that most bail bond companies offer to the community.
A bail bond agent,
or bondsman, is any person or corporation which will act as a surety
and pledge money or property as bail for the appearance
of a criminal defendant in court.
Although banks, insurance companies and other similar institutions are usually the
sureties
on other types of contracts, for example, to bond a contractor who is under a contractual
obligation to
pay for the completion of a construction project, such entities are reluctant
to put their depositors' or policyholders'
funds at the kind of risk involved in posting a bail bond.
Bail bond agents, on the other hand, are usually in the business
to cater to
criminal defendants, often securing their customers' release in just a few hours.
Bail bond agents
are almost exclusively found in the United States.
In most other countries bail is usually more modest and the practice
of bounty hunting is illegal.
Bond agents have a standing security agreement with local court officials, in which they
agree to
post an irrevocable "blanket" bond, which will pay the court if any defendant for whom the
bond
agent is responsible does not appear. The bond agent usually has an arrangement with
an insurance company, bank or another
credit provider to draw on such security,
even during hours when the bank is not operating.
This eliminates the
need for the bondsman to deposit cash or property with the court
every time a new defendant is bailed out.
Bond
agents generally charge a fee of 10-12% of the total amount of the bail required
in order to post a bond for the amount.
This fee is not refundable and represents the
bond agent's compensation for his or her services. As the practice of paying
a 10% cash
premium for a bond became widespread, some courts have recently instituted a practice of
accepting 10%
of the bond amount in cash, for example, by requiring a $10,000 bond or $1,000 in cash.
In jurisdictions where the 10%
cash alternative is available, the deposit is usually returned
if the case is concluded without violation of the conditions
of bail. This has the effect of
giving the defendant or persons giving security for the defendant a substantial incentive
to
make the cash deposit rather than using a bail bond agent.
For large bail amounts, bond agents can generally
obtain security against the assets of the
defendant or persons willing to assist the defendant. For example, for a $100,000
bond for a
person who owns a home, the bond agent would charge $10,000 and take a mortgage against the
house for
the full penal sum of the bond.
If the defendant fails to appear in court, the bond agent is allowed by law and/or
contractual
arrangement to bring the defendant to the jurisdiction of the court in order to recover the
money paid
out under the bond, usually through the use of a bounty hunter. The bond agent is
also allowed to sue the defendant for
any money forfeited to the court should the defendant
fail to appear. In most jurisdictions, bond agents have to be licensed
to carry on business
within the state. Several unusual organizations often provide bail bonds. |
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