LAURA E. AKERS

      A bail bond is a contract between a person accused of a crime and a businessman called a bail bondsman. Bail bondsmen pay the entire amount of a person’s bail in return for a small fee, typically 10% of the bail itself. The bondsman keeps this fee once the person is released from jail. Once the person is released from jail they agree to show up at their next court appearance, but if they do not the bail bondsman forfeits the amount of money they put up to secure their release. When the person “skips” bail, the bondsman can use bail enforcement agents, commonly called “bounty hunters,” to track down the accused and force them to appear at trial.
    The most common type of bail requires a set amount of money or property given to the court in order to secure the release of a person accused of a crime. This amount of money is begins with a predetermined amount for each crime as determined by a document called a “bail schedule.” These documents lay out the bail for thousands of crimes from fishing without a license to aggravated assault to credit card fraud. Some particularly serious crimes do not allow bail, or a judge may declare that a person is a flight risk, which means that if released on bail the accused may flee prosecution and not return. Judges have a great deal of leeway in setting the amount of bail, so every case is different.
     Depending on the alleged crime, bail can be extremely expensive, and not everyone has the checking account to pay the court thousands of dollars to get out of jail. Bail bonds are the best option for anyone who has a loved one in jail and needs to get them out. By paying a small percentage of the bail to a bail bondsman, usually around 10%, the bail bondsman secures the release of the person from jail. The bondsman pays the rest of the bail themselves, so they take great care in making sure their client shows up for trial, otherwise they forfeit all the bail money they paid.
    Just remember, YOU WON'T GET YOUR 10% BACK. Depending on the crime, bail may be reduced at arraignment or charges might not be filed. Carefully consider your situation before applying for bail.