How to Choose a Bail Bondsman

Besides picking a lawyer, deciding which bail bondsman to make use of is among the most important choices a criminal defendant could make.

We work for affordable FAST release anywhere in Richmond, VA or any of the surrounding counties.
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The quality of service offered by many bondsmen can be very different although they must charge the exact same prices by law. With a lot of alternatives offered, it is imperative that someone know and understand their options prior to making a decision. Everyone’s situation is different and it is necessary to select the very best bonding company for your demands.

Experience is a vital part of how well a bondsman performs their job. Only by doing it many times and working with many of the local jails and courts can a bail bondsman find out the important processes and strategies to speed up a defendant’s release. Establishing an understanding of each facility’s method is vital to supplying a top quality solution.

A bail bonds firm and each bondsman should be totally certified by the state in which they operate. For instance, someone selling Richmond (VA) bail bonds ought to be certified as a bail bondsman by the State of Virginia.

Some bail bondsmen offer a payment plan, card repayments, no security bonds and occasionally funding. It is a good sign when a bail bondsman takes the time to comprehend a customer’s monetary position and after that provides a remedy that fits their needs.

The accessibility of a bail bondsman is extremely vital. A bail bondsman needs to be accessible when you or your relative needs them. This not only applies to the time when he is first posting the bail bond, but likewise after the offender is released. There are often times when the bail bondsman is required throughout the legal procedings. Will yours be there when you need him or her?

Bondsmen are superabundant. Deciding on the finest bail bondsman is not easy. Understanding what divides a good bail bondsman from a bad one is essential in selecting the most effective expert for your needs …and, of course, to help you get out of jail fast.

You also need a great attorney!  In this YouTube video, the defendant’s attorney did  his best, but bail was still denied. (That’s very rare, by the way.):

Learn more at Felony Guide

The term “bail out” has many meanings.

Faster! Faster!

1. To remove (water) from a boat by repeatedly filling a container and emptying it over the side.In other words, if your boat is sinking, you better bail it out!
   
   
2. To make an emergency parachute jump from an aircraft, as in: “Holy Sh..!”
   
   
3. To help (a person, organization, etc.) out of a predicament, as in . . . “Did they use our tax money to bail out rich bankers again?”

 Last, but certainly not least . . .

• Security, bail is usually a sum of money, exchanged for the release of an arrested person as a guarantee of that person’s appearance for trial. As in . . . Bail out of jail:“Help! Mom, Dad I just got taken in for drunk driving, can you bail me out now?!”

What is Bail?

Bail is the  amount of money set by the magistrate, police, or judge, depending on the state you are in, to make sure that a person goes to court or returns to court if they are released  after they have been arrested.

We work for affordable FAST release anywhere in Richmond, VA or any of the surrounding counties.
Call Now: 804-370-0053

When is Bail set?   

The Bail amount is set at the time of arrest.

If the defendant cannot afford the amount, he/she can petition the judge at arraignment for a lower amount. And, of course, they can use the services of a bail bondsman.

What is the difference between Bail and a Bail Bond?

Bail is the cash payment paid by the defendant to the court.

A bond is the bondsman’s pledge to make good on the bail if the defendant doesn’t appear.

See: http://www.diffen.com/difference/Bail_vs_Bond

A person’s first thought upon landing in jail  often is “How can I get out — fast?!”

Because, nobody wants to stay in jail one minute longer than they have to.

The usual way to get out of jail fast is to “post bail.”

24/7 …Because you don’t want anyone you care about to stay in jail one minute longer than absolutely necessary!
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Bail can be cash, a bond, or property that an arrested person puts up to ensure that he or she will appear in court when ordered to do so. If the defendant doesn’t show up, the court keeps the bail and issues a warrant for the defendant’s arrest.

How Bail Is Set

Judges set the amount.  Because many people want to get out of jail immediately , many jails have standard bail schedules that specify the amounts for common crimes. An arrested person can often get out of jail quickly by paying the amount set forth in the station house schedule.

How does bail work?

This YouTube video entitled “How do Bail Bonds Work” is done by a legal expert:

If a suspect wants to post bail but can’t afford the amount required by the bail schedule, the suspect can ask a judge to lower it. Depending on each state’s procedures, a request for lower bail may be made either in a special setting or hearing or when the suspect appears in court for the first time.

The Eighth Amendment to the Constitution requires that bail not be excessive. This means that bail should not be used to raise money for the government or to punish a person for being suspected of committing a crime. The purpose of bail is to allow the arrested person to remain free until convicted of a crime, and the amount of bail must be no more than is reasonably necessary to keep the suspect from fleeing before a case is over.

So much for theory. In fact, many judges set an impossibly high amount in particular types of cases (such as those involving drug sales or rape), knowing that the high bail will effectively keep the suspect in jail until the case is over. Although bail set for this purpose — called preventative detention — is thought by many to violate the Constitution, courts have uniformly rejected this argument (the issue has never been decided by the U.S. Supreme Court, the ultimate arbiter of what is and is not constitutional).

Conditions of Bail

Bailed-out suspects commonly must comply with “conditions of release.” If a suspect violates a condition, a judge may revoke bail and order the suspect re-arrested and returned to jail. Some bail conditions, such as a requirement that a suspect “obey all laws,” are common. Other conditions may reflect the crime for which a suspect was arrested. For example, a judge may order a domestic violence suspect not to contact the complaining witness.

Paying Bail

Bail can take the following forms:

• cash or check for the full amount of the bail
• property worth the full amount
• a bond (that is, a guaranteed payment of the full bail amount), or
• a waiver of payment on the condition that the defendant appear in court at the required time (commonly called “release on one’s own recognizance”).

A bond that costs 10% of the bail amount may sound like a good deal compared to posting cash bail, but buying a bond may cost more in the long run. If the full amount of the bail is paid, it will be refunded (less a small administrative fee) when the case is over and all required appearances have been made.

In contrast, a bail bondsman’s fee is nonrefundable. In addition, the bond seller may require “collateral”. This means that the person who pays for the bail bond must also give the bond seller a financial interest in some of the person’s property. The bond seller can cash in on this interest if the suspect fails to appear in court.

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More Information:

To learn more about bail, and everything else you need to know about criminal law, get The Criminal Law Handbook: Know Your Rights, Survive the System, by Paul Bergman and Sara J. Berman (Nolo). If you need a lawyer, you can turn to Nolo’s trusted Lawyer Directory, to find a criminal defense attorney in your area.