Bail bonds
One of the most scary situations you can find yourself in is inside a prison after you have been arrested and charged with an supposed crime. Things could go wrong even more if you or your family have no immediate cash on hand to post your bail bond, which will allow you get released from jail until your court hearing. In such a challenging situation, you first need to calm yourself, think straight, and go with the most effective solution: Get in touch with a bail bondsman who can help a lot in getting you out of prison.
You are allowed at least one phone call following your arrest. Use that to get in touch with a loved one and request that person to contact a bail bond agent. Your family member can use our site to look for a reputable bail bondsman in Grant County who can then post the bail on your behalf to secure your freedom.
Use a bail bond to gain temporary freedom after getting arrested
The judicial system permits a commercial bonding company to post a bail bond, also called surety bond, to help those apprehended and charged with a crime gain temporary freedom while waiting for their trial.
The judicial system allows two sorts of bail -- a criminal bail bond as well as a civil bail bond.
To make it clear, a judge does not impose a criminal bail bond to punish you for your alleged crime. You are still presumed innocent until proven guilty. However, the judge requires an assurance that you will show up in court to face your accuser; thus, the need to post bail. If you attend all of your arranged criminal proceedings as promised, and you are in the end found not guilty, the bail will be repaid to you. If you are condemned, the bail amount will be used to pay for the penalties and fines that the court might impose on you. If you skip the court appearances, the bail will be forfeited and you will be subject to getting arrested.
On the other hand, the civil bail bonds imposed on civil cases function as an assurance or a surety with the court where the financial obligations, claims, and fees imposed on the defendant can be paid from.
How useful is a bail bond?
A bail bondsman is your biggest hope to not spend too much time in prison if you don't have sufficient cash available to post your bail. A bail bond company usually requires a non-refundable rate of 10% of the bail. That is just reasonable, looking at the risk the bonding company is taking in putting up the bond. Anyway, the most important thing is to get you out of prison, and for that have to search for a reputable bonding company in your local area.
A deal with a bail bondsman is also valuable due to the fact that the latter will facilitate your release from prison, simplifying a complicated judicial process. You can just contact a bondsman who can offer you an agreement and request you to give the required info about yourself, or a person you want to bail out. In case you accept the agreement, you can simply relax and wait for the bail bondsman to post the bail for you.
Obviously you still need to show up at your court hearing. However, now that you're free on bail, you can show up in court in civilian clothes. If you had remained in prison because you could not afford to put up bail, you would show up in court in a jail uniform-- and that's not a pretty sight to see. A bondsman allows you to make a respectable appearance in the courtroom, which really matters a lot since first impressions matter.
How the bail bonds process works
To begin the bail bonds process, you first need to search for a bail bondsman. You can do that in person, over the phone and even via the internet. Given the stringent adherence to professionalism, a bondsman will happily walk you through the bail bond process and iron out any doubts that you may have.
Time is of the essence during this procedure. As soon as the bail bondsman addressed all of your questions to your satisfaction, the bail bondsman will handle all of the procedures vital to get you or your loved one released from prison.
To make sure all goes smoothly, a bondsman needs to have the defendant's name, birthdate, and the location or city of the arrest. With this information, the bondsman will have the ability to get additional info from the prison system needed to secure the release. After managing all the procedures, the bondsman will visit the prison to get the defendant out.
Using a bonding company to bail out yourself or somebody you love is that simple, you can be out of jail and reunited with your loved ones in a few hours.
What info should I have when getting in touch with a bondsman?
When getting in touch with a bonding company, make sure that you have:
- The full name of the defendant
- The name of the prison the defendant is jailed in
- The booking number
- The charges
- Any other relevant info you can think of
What is accepted as collateral?
Almost always, the bonding company will require collateral with the deal. This is understandable, taking into consideration the risks involved. A prisoner is a possible flight risk, and are countless occasions where a bonding company needed to employ the services of a bounty hunter to bring back the fleeing suspect.
But what is acceptable as collateral? Essentially, if a bondsman considers something valuable, you can use it as a guarantee for the bail bond. Below are a couple of examples:
- Realty
- Autos
- Stocks
- Jewelry
- Electronic devices
- Bank accounts
- Visa or mastercard
If you can't afford the bond right now, bonding companies usually offer payment options that you can make use of. Just talk to the bondsman to figure out which option is best suited in your circumstances.
You can use our site to search for a bondsman that will be perfect for you. Most of them operate 24/7, ready to assist you or your loved one to spend the least amount of time in jail as possible.
