The “Get Out of Jail For a Fee” Card

Among the first thoughts to cross one’s mind when a loved one is incarcerated is the matter of, “How do I get them out?”. Aside from letting said loved one sit behind bars until the hearing, the most readily available option is what is known as “posting bail”. But what is a bail? How does bail work? Who qualifies for a bail bond? And how does one go about contacting a bail bond agency?

So long as the offense is noncapital, or one that does not carry the possibility of the death penalty, the Judiciary Act of 1789 states that the defendant who has committed the offense is bailable; thus, bail bonds may be made. In fact, Bail Law remained mostly unchanged in the United States from 1789 until 1966. The first bail bonds business established in the US was in San Francisco, 1898. Nearly three centuries later, there are now many bail bond companies nationwide, offering different types of of bail bonds.

Before any any bail bonds are processed, the defendant, or someone in connection to the defendant, must generally have 10 to 15% of the total bail amount set by the court. Some companies will even provide the service of no collateral bail bonds, essentially allowing one to post bail with out any upfront money. Certain companies will accept cash payments or credit card payment and may even provide payment plans to assist the customer, such as R and B Bail Bonds, a 24 hour Las vegas bail bonds company. Like any customer looking for good service, it is imperative that one do the appropriate research before choosing. One may even wish to consider a local bail bondsman to handle out of state bail bonds if the defendant has been arrested in another state.

Once the customer has decided on the company, and meets the bail bondsman requirements, the bail bonds process begins, sometimes resulting in the release of the defendant in as little as a few hours after the initial imprisonment. It should be understood however, that the jailing facility ultimately determines the release time. Additionally, any time bail bonds are processed, this does does not acquit the defendant of the crime. So, what does a bail bondsman do? A bail bondsman simply ensures that the court receive the set bail amount in exchange for the defendant to be released. The defendant must be present for the hearing date. Unfortunately for the defendant, there is no bail that can overturn a conviction.