How Does the Bail Bond System Work?

By / 3 years ago / Law / No Comments
How Does the Bail Bond System Work?

If you’ve ever watched the news you have heard about a defendant being released from jail on bail. But have you ever really thought about what that means or how the United States’ bail bond system works? Read on for the quick lowdown about bail bonds Harrisburg PA.

What is Bail?

Before we get into bail bonds, we need an understanding of bail. Bail is an amount of money, decided by a court judge, that is put up as insurance when a defendant is allowed to remain free while waiting for a court date. The bail amount will depend upon the severity of the crime, as well as the perceived risk of the defendant fleeing the jurisdiction. In the event that the defendant does not show up for court dates as scheduled, some or all of the bail account must be remanded to the court.

What is a Bail Bond?

Because bail amounts are typically high, most defendants are unable to raise the cash required to get out on bail. This is where bail bonds come in. Bail bonds are a type of surety bond where the surety company pays a certain amount of the bond in cash and secures the rest of that amount through the defendants’ collateral.

Most bail bonds will require 10% of the total bail paid in cash. For example, if a defendant’s bail is set at $50,000, he or she would need to come up with 10% of that amount in cash and then secure the rest of the bond with collateral.

Bail bond companies accept many different types of collateral such as vehicles, home mortgages or other property.

How Do I Get a Bail Bond?

There are a few different ways that a defendant can post bail. First of all, one can pay the entire bail amount to the court, in cash. Secondly, some courts will accept real property, such as a home, as a bond. And lastly, you can contact a bail bondsman to secure your bail for you.

Laura McKim

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