Between the time of arrest and the start of the trial, jail time is inevitable, and the only way to get out from it soon is to seek bail. In very rare cases, especially for petty crimes, the police might release the person based on a written promise of abiding by the legal process that will follow and appear in court on the scheduled date in the future. But this is applicable only for persons without any criminal history, and such cases are only exceptions.The general practice is to arrange for Castle Bail Bonds Shelby County or deposit the sum of bail amount determined by the court for release of the person based on the assurance of following all conditions stipulated in the bail.
Why prefer bail bonds?
It is not always easy to secure bail by making payment because the bail amounts are usually quite high, and arranging funds by proving its legal source takes time. Issuing bail bonds in lieu of paying cash is a faster and easier way of securing bail, and it involves much less money. If the court fixes $15,000 as the bail amount, then to secure a bail bond, you must pay only $1,500 to the bail agent or bondsman. As soon as the agent receives the premium amount, he will immediately furnish the bond to the court and seek release.
Although the money involved is less, the accused must provide some collateral security to the bail bond agent in the form of something valuable like electronics, jewelry, etc. so that the agent can act a surety and assure the court that should the accused violate the conditions, the bond agent would be in a position to pay the full bail amount to the court.
Bond agent’s responsibilities
Bond agents in the United States are licensed professionals who can carry out the business of furnishing bail bonds on behalf of accused persons to arrange for their quick release from jail soon after arrest. To qualify for the license of a bail bond agent, the person must have the desired qualification to operate as a bail bondsman under the aegis of an insurance company.
The money collected by the agent from the accused goes towards payment of premium to the insurance company. The bail agent or bondsman is liable to pay the full bail amount in the event the accused violates the bail terms or flees. To stay covered for such events, the bail bondsman usually posts a blanket bond with the local court that helps to avoid recurrent issuance of bonds whenever the situation arises. The accused person would also face arrest for violation of the bail conditions.
Tracking the accused
The bail bondsman shoulders the responsibility of ensuring that the accused appears in court on the due date and keeps a close track of the accused’s activities and movements after release. If need be, they might also depute a guard for better surveillance of the accused.
The bondsman assesses the risksrelated to bailing out the accused to decide whether to work for them or not.