Bail bonds
Essentially, a bail bond is a sort of promise that you will attend your hearing at the specified date. In return, you will be permitted to remain free even though you are still awaiting trial for a criminal or civil charge. Otherwise, you will sit in jail while waiting for the court to rule on a verdict. A bail bondsman can pay bail for you and get you released from jail.
Depending on the allegation, the cost of bail can be expensive. Not many suspects are able to put up the bail bond. There's a good reason why the penal system is overloaded. But there's a lawful solution to gain your temporary release from prison even while your case is still in progress. With our website you can find a trusted bondsman in Washington County.
Why does a judge impose bail ?
The law permits the services of a bail bondsman to post a bail bond, also known as surety bond, to help an accused get temporary freedom while waiting for their court appearance.
The law allows two kinds of bail -- a criminal bail bond and a civil bail bond.
To be clear, a court does not require a criminal bail bond to penalize you for your supposed criminal offense. You are still innocent up until proven guilty. Having said that, the court needs to have a guarantee that you will show up in court to face your accuser; thus, the need to post bail. If you show up at all of your arranged criminal proceedings as promised, and you are in the end acquitted, the bail amount will be repaid to you. In case you are condemned, the bail amount will be used to pay for the penalties and fines that the judge may impose on you. When you miss the court appearances, the bail will be lost and you will be subject to getting arrested.
The same reasoning applies with the civil bail bonds. The bail imposed on civil cases works as a guarantee or a surety that the offender will be capable to pay the fines and penalties that the judge might impose on the suspect after the trial.
How helpful is a bail bond?
A bondsman is your biggest hope to not spend considerable time in jail in case you don't have enough cash available to pay your bail. A bail bondsman generally asks for a non-refundable fee of 10% of the bail amount. That is no more than reasonable, taking into account the risk the bonding company is taking in putting up the money. In any case, the most important thing is to get you released from jail, and for that you need to find a trustworthy bonding company in your local area.
An agreement with a bondsman is also helpful given that the latter can assist in your release from prison, simplifying a complex legal procedure. You can simply reach out to a bail bondsman who can offer you a deal and request you to provide the relevant info about yourself, or someone you want to bail out. In case you agree to the agreement, you can just relax and wait for the bail bondsman to pay the bail for you.
Needless to say you still need to show up at your hearing. But now that you're out on a bond, you can appear in court in your own clothes. When you had remained in jail because you could not afford to pay bail, you would appear in court in a prison uniform-- and that does not make a good impression. A bail bondsman makes it possible for you to make a respectable appearance in court, which really matters a lot considering that first impressions matter.
How does the bail bonds process work?
To begin the bail bonds process, you first need to search for a bail agent. You can do that in person, over the phone and even via the internet. Given the strict adherence to professionalism, a bail bondsman will gladly walk you through the bail bond procedure and straighten out any reservations that you may have.
Time is of the essence during this process. When the bail bondsman addressed all of your questions to your satisfaction, the bail agent will deal with all of the formalities needed to get you or your loved one released from prison.
To make sure all goes smoothly, a bondsman needs to know the accused's name, birthdate, and the location or city of the arrest. With this info, the bail bondsman will be able to gather extra information from the prison system required to secure the release. After managing all the procedures, the bondsman will go over to the prison to get the accused out.
Using a bail bondsman to bail out yourself or somebody you love is that simple, you can be out of jail and reunited with your loved ones in a few hours.
Information your bondsman needs to know
When you get in touch with a bondsman, you need to share these details:
- Your full name if you are the suspect
- The name and location of the jailhouse where the accused is detained
- The booking number in the police blotter
- The complaints filed against the suspect
- Any other relevant information
What is accepted as collateral?
Almost always, the bail bondsman requires collateral with the transaction. This is understandable, taking into consideration the risks that are involved. An inmate is a flight risk, and are countless examples where a bonding company needed to hire a bounty hunter to recover the fleeing defendant.
But what is accepted as collateral? Basically, when a bondsman considers something valuable, you can use it as collateral for the bail bond. Below are a some examples:
- Real estate
- Autos
- Shares
- Jewelry
- Electronic devices
- Bank accounts
- Visa or mastercard
If you can't afford the bond right now, bail bonds companies have payment options that you can use. Just speak with the bondsman to figure out what option is best suited in your situation.
You can use our site to find a bail bondsman that will be perfect for you. Almost all of them are open day and night, ready to assist you or your loved one to spend the as little time as possible in jail.
