Bail bonds are an agreement between you and bail bond services. Bail bond services will bail you out of jail for a fee, but only if they are certain that you will show up for your court date. The bail bond service essentially takes on the responsibility of ensuring that you show up to court, so it’s in their best interest to ensure that bail is not too high.
Both the bail bond company and you have to put up money or collateral when posting bail. Usually, customers only need about 10% of the bail amount stated by the judge, though some people do still have to pay more depending on what they’re charged with. It’s important to note that most bail bond companies don’t accept personal checks as collateral, so you’ll have to provide a cash deposit or find a property to use instead.
Bail bonds in Lancaster county typically cost 15%-20% of the bail amount to post bail. This means that bail for $10,000 would require a bail bond fee of about $1,500-$2,000. Keep in mind that there may be additional fees besides just the percentage paid to bail bond agencies if you use them though — especially if you don’t show up to court.
If you do not pay your bail bond agreement in full by the time required (usually 1 week after being released from jail), most bail bondsmen will forward your case to a collection agency and can charge interest as well as affect your credit score.
As far as bail is concerned, bail bond services will not help you if they believe that you’ll skip town and never see your court date. The bail bond company has to be certain that you’re going to show up for your court date or else lose out on their fee as well as bail money/property put up by the person using the bail bond service. Skipping bail or failing to appear in court is a fairly large offense and could result in jail time as well as even more charges against you.
Who can bail me out of jail?
If someone bails you out of jail, it means that they’ve given an amount of money equal to the bail set by the judge to get you released from prison. The bail money is held by the bail bond services until you show up for court, then it will be returned to whoever paid bail.
The person that pays bail must be a party in the case. They have to have some sort of stake in your trial, whether they’re being charged with something or are an essential witness. Your bail cannot be paid by any third parties unless they are members of your immediate family.
The bail bondsman has no power over who can bail you out or how much money is required for bail. These decisions are made entirely at the discretion of the judge. For instance, if you’re charged with murder, even if your mother posts bail for you, chances are that it will not be enough bail to get released. This is because bail has less to do with how much bail you require and more to do with convincing the bail bondsman that you’ll show up for your court date.
How does bail work?
Your bail amount is set by the judge after reviewing all evidence presented in your case. The bail amount has nothing to do with how severe or un-severe the crime is, but instead focuses on two things: what’s at risk if you fail to appear in court and whether you’re likely to skip town while out on bail. For example, even if it were low risk that someone accused of murder would try skipping town, they would still be required to post staggering bail amounts so as not to avoid looking like they have something to hide.
If bail is denied, it means that the judge has decided that bail should not be set for you. This decision can happen if bail is deemed too high or if you’re suspected of trying to flee the country before your trial. Just because bail is denied does not necessarily mean that bail will also be denied later on in court, so it’s best to speak with a lawyer about what this could mean for your case moving forward.
How much does bail cost?
Bail amounts are usually pretty expensive and will vary depending on your charges. The amount of bail required depends on how likely it is that you’ll skip town while out on bail (low risk vs high risk). If granted bail, both you and whoever paid bail must sign a bail bond agreement. Usually, bail is at least around 10% of your bail amount, but it can also be much more. In some cases, bail may not even be allowed, in which case bail would need to be paid by a third party or family member.
What happens after bail has been posted?
After you’ve been released from jail and bail has been successfully posted, the court will give you information about your next steps and when to appear for your court date. You should take the necessary precautions so that nothing interferes with this required appearance because if you miss your court date without warning, the bail money will be forfeited and could lead to additional charges against you such as failure to appear in court.
