Why We Love Bail Bonds in Los Angeles (And You Should, Too!)
What Is a Bail Bond?
A bail bond is an settlement by a prison defendant to appear for trial or pay a sum of cash set by the courtroom. The bail bond is cosigned by a bail bondsman, who charges the defendant a charge in return for guaranteeing the payment. The bail bond is a sort of surety bond.
The commercial bail bond system exists solely within the United States and the Philippines. In other nations, bail may entail a set of restrictions and conditions placed on prison defendants in return for his or her launch until their trial dates.
Key Takeaways
·A bail bond cosigned by a bail bondsmen is posted by a defendant in lieu of full payment of the bail set by the court.
·The bail bond serves as surety that the defendant will seem for trial.
·Judges usually have vast latitude in setting bail quantities.
·Bail bondsmen usually charge 10% of the bail amount up entrance in return for his or her service and should charge additional charges. Some states have put a cap of eight% on the quantity charged.
·The bail system is extensively viewed as discriminatory to low-income defendant and contributing to the mass-incarceration of younger African-American males.
How a Bail Bond Works
A person who is charged with against the law is often given a bail listening to before a judge. The quantity of the bail is on the decide's discretion. A judge may deny bail altogether or set it at an astronomical stage if the defendant is charged with a violent crime or seems more likely to be a flight risk.
Judges generally have large latitude in setting bail amounts, and typical amounts fluctuate by jurisdiction. A defendant charged with a nonviolent misdemeanor may see bail set at $500. Felony crime expenses have correspondingly Los Angeles County Bail Bonds high bail, with $20,000 or more not unusual.
The business bail bond system exists only in the United States and the Philippines.
As soon as the quantity of the bail is about, the defendant's choices are to stay in jail till the fees are resolved at trial, to arrange for a bail bond, or to pay the bail quantity in full till the case is resolved. In the last occasion, courts in some jurisdictions settle for title to a home or other collateral of worth in lieu of money.
Bail bondsmen, also called bail bond brokers, provide written agreements to criminal courts to pay the bail in full if the defendants whose appearances they assure fail to look on their trial dates.
Bail bondsmen usually charge 10% of the bail quantity up entrance in return for their service and may cost extra fees. Some states have put a cap of 8% on the quantity charged.
The agent might also require a press release of creditworthiness or may demand that the defendant flip over collateral within the form of property or securities. Bail bondsmen generally settle for most property of value, including vehicles, jewellery, and houses in addition to shares and bonds.
Once the bail or bail bond is delivered, the defendant is launched till trial.
The Disadvantages of the Bail Bond System
The bail bond system has turn into part of the bigger debate over mass incarceration, especially of young African-American males, in the U.S.
The bail bond system is considered by many even within the legal profession to be discriminatory, because it requires low-revenue defendants to stay in jail or scrape collectively a ten% cash price and the remainder of the bail-in collateral—even before they stand trial for any crime. PrisonPolicy.org says that about 536,000 persons are being held in jails within the U.S. because they can not afford bail or a bail bondsman's providers.
Four states together with Illinois, Kentucky, Oregon, and Wisconsin have outlawed bail bondsmen and as an alternative require a 10% deposit on the bail quantity to be lodged with the courtroom. In 2018, California voted to eliminate money bail requirements from its court docket system.