Underground Journal

Bail – How Does It Work?

The constitution gives everyone who is detained the right to obtain and post bail in order to get out of jail until the day of the trial. Bail amounts are usually set high enough to be an incentive for the defendant to return on the appropriate date and be eligible to get all their money returned. At the same time, bail cannot be excessive. Having said that, bail amounts are determined on a case by case basis and many factors are involved in determining the amount that bail should be set at. Some of the most expensive bond amounts are usually set for immigration bail bonds, while the cheapest bonds are usually for people who commit petty crimes.

You can choose to post bail on your own using your own cash. However, be aware, you must be able to prove that the cash came from a legitimate source of income. At the same time, using cash to post bail is not always suggested if you have a limited amount of resources. For those who need to have that cash at their disposal on a daily basis, bail bondsman services are ideal. These types of services offer bail bonds to be paid for you for a small fee. Most services charge 10% of the bail amount. If you pay with your own money, that money will be returned provided that you arrive for the predetermined court date. If you do not show up for court, this is called skipping bail and all of your bail money will be forfeited. The same goes for bail bondsman. If a bondsman pays for you, he will lose the money if you skip bail. If this occurs, he can utilize bounty hunters to apprehend you and make you appear in court so that he may get his bond money back.

Skipping bond in any case is never suggested. Once you are re-apprehended, your case in court will be jeopardized and your defense will be damaged, greatly reducing your chances of being free again anytime soon. Plus, it is never fun to run from the authorities and a bounty hunter.

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