Bail And Criminal Charges: What To Know

When you end up behind bars and charged with a criminal offense, your priority is getting out of jail. Jail is not a good place to wait for your trial to begin since that could be months and months from the time of your arrest. You need to be out of jail so that you can not only stay safe and healthy, but can continue to work, spend time with your family, and prepare to face the charges.

Bail and Criminal Charges

Many courts take criminal charges, whether they are felonies or misdemeanors, so seriously that they set bail extremely high. The high bail amounts are meant to ensure that defendants will appear for their court cases. However, this can leave many defendants and their loved ones wondering how they can afford the bail. The solution may be not paying the full bail but paying a bail bonding agent.

What Can a Bonding Agent Do?

Bail bonding agencies exist for one reason only—to help people get out of jail affordably. Instead of having to pay the full price of the bail charged by the court, those using a bail bonding agency will pay only a small percentage of the bail. For a percentage of the full bail, you can be released from jail just as you would if you could afford to pay bail. Though the percentages charged vary, here is an example using a 10% bail bond percentage. If the defendant's full bail is $10,000, you pay the bail bonding agent $1,000 or 10%. To find out how much you will need to pay your bail bonding agent, call them and provide them with the name, charges, and bail amount charged by the court.

Pledging Property

Almost all bail bond customers can pay the percentage to be let out of jail, but some may need to do a bit more. In some cases, the bail bonding agency will also ask you to leave property with them temporarily to further secure the bail bond. That property might be a vehicle title, a deed, electronics, and more. The property is returned once the case is complete. This type of measure is meant to ensure that the defendant obeys all bail conditions. The bail bonding agency could be obligated to pay the full bail amount to the court if the defendant doesn't follow the rules.

To find out more about using a bail bonding agency, speak to a bail bonding agent near you. Contact a local company like Affordable Bail Bonds for more info. 

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