Local Surety In Bail
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A bail bondsman, bail bond agent or bond dealer is any person, agency or corporation that will act as a and pledge money or property as for the appearance of a in court.Bail bond agents are almost exclusively found in the and its former commonwealth, the. In most other countries, the practice of is illegal. The industry is represented by various, with the and the forming an umbrella group for bail agents and surety companies and the representing the bounty-hunting industry.
Organizations that represent the legal profession, including the and the, oppose the practice of bond dealing, claiming that it discriminates against poor and middle-class defendants while doing nothing for. Contents.History The first modern bail bonds business in the United States was established by in in 1898. However, clay tablets from ca. 2750 BC describe surety bail bond agreements made in the city of, located in modern-day. Indemnitorsobtained the release of defendants from jail by paying sums of currency and pledging, with their own property as collateral, that said defendants would show up in court. Modern practice According to 1996 figures, one quarter of all released felony defendants at trial, but those released via bail bond appear more frequently than other defendants.Bond agents maintain standing security agreements with local court officials, under which they post irrevocable 'blanket' bonds to be paid if the defendants for whom they are providing surety fail to appear.
Arrangements with insurance companies, banks, or other credit providers enable bond agents to draw on such security even outside normal business hours, eliminating the need to deposit cash or property with the court every time a new defendant is bailed out. Laws governing the practice of bail bonds vary by state, although the, sponsored by the, has been widely adopted.
In the state of, bail bond agreements must be verified and certified by the. The practice of commercial bail bonds is unlawful in the states of, and.Applicable federal laws include the of the and the, incorporated into the. Training and requirements 'There are 18 states where theoretically anyone can become a bail recovery agent.' In most jurisdictions, bond agents must be licensed to carry on business within the state. Some insurance companies may offer insurance coverage that includes local bail bonds for traffic related arrests.
Pricing Bond agents generally charge a fee of ten percent for a state charge and fifteen percent for a federal bail bond, with a minimum of one hundred dollars in such states as, required in order to post a bond for the full amount of the bond. This fee is not refundable and represents the bond agent's compensation for services rendered.is one of the states which allow an arrestee to 'put up' a residence for a bail bond. To do this, the applicant must register a and name the bonding agency as beneficiary.
While this gives the bail company a lien on the property, it can only take ownership if the defendant fails to comply with all court instructions and rules.In some states, such as Florida, bondsmen are responsible for paying the forfeitures, and if they fail to pay the full amount, they are forbidden to write further bonds in the state. Recovery and bounty hunting If the defendant fails to appear in court, the bond agent is allowed by law or contractual arrangement to bring the defendant to the jurisdiction of the court in order to recover the money paid out under the bond, usually through the use of a. 'Only the Philippines has a surety bail system similar in structure and function as the US.' : 193 In the past, courts in Australia, India and South Africa had disciplined lawyers for professional misconduct for setting up commercial bail arrangements.Some states, such as, have outlawed the use or licensing of 'bounty hunters'; therefore, bail bondsman must apprehend their own fugitives. Bond agents are allowed to sue indemnitors, any persons who guaranteed the defendants' appearances in court, and/or the defendants themselves for any moneys forfeited to the court for failure of defendants appear.
Alternatives and controversy In addition to the use of bail bonds, a defendant may be released under other terms. These alternatives include, or signature bond,. The choice of these alternatives is determined by the court.
As of 2007 four states—, and —had completely banned commercial bail bonding, usually substituting the 10% cash deposit alternative described above. Some of these states specifically allow and similar organizations to continue providing bail bond services pursuant to insurance contracts or membership agreements. While not outright illegal, the practice of bail bond services has effectively ended in Massachusetts as of 2014. Most of the US legal establishment, including the American Bar Association and the National District Attorneys Association, dislikes the bail bond business, saying it discriminates against poor and middle-class defendants, does nothing for public safety, and usurps decisions that ought to be made by the justice system.
Charitable bail funds have sprung up to combat the issue of discrimination, using donations to cover the bail amount for the arrested person. The economically discriminatory effect of the bond system has been controversial and subject to attempts at reform since the 1910s.
The market evidence indicates that judges in setting bail demanded lower probabilities of flight from minority defendants. See, for example, 's institution of a bond department at 's.
Furthermore, the economic incentives of bonding for profit make it less likely that defendants charged with minor crimes (who are assigned lower amounts of bail) will be released. This is because a bail bondsman will not find it profitable to work on matters where the percentage of profit would yield $10 or $20. As such, bail bondsmen help release people with higher amounts of bail who are also charged with higher crimes, creating an imbalance in the numbers of people charged with minor crimes (low level misdemeanors) and increasing jail expenditures for this category of crimes.Several high-profile cases involving bondsman misconduct have led to calls for increased regulation of the industry or outright abolition of the bail for profit industry. One of the most prominent cases, in Louisiana, involved bribery of judges by a bail bonding agency.
A far-reaching FBI investigation code-named 'Operation Wrinkled Robe' led to criminal charges and removal proceedings for various judges, such as, and police officers. In California a landmark case governing commercial free speech was decided on November 5, 2013, which upheld the conviction of Bail Bondsman Todd Russell Dolezal after his felony arrest by the California Department of Insurance, Investigation Division, Senior Investigator Gulcher for bail solicitation. Under Dolezal v.
California, the California Court of Appeals held that the narrowly tailored restriction on commercial speech prohibiting direct solicitation of bail at a jail passes constitutional muster. The California Code of Regulations strictly regulates bail activities. This ruling prompted a statewide email notice to all California licensed bail agents regarding the ruling.The American Civil Liberties Union has criticized the practice of bail bonds as a form of injustice against low income communities and fueling mass incarceration of innocent people with the ACLU recommending automated text messages or robocalls for court appearances In popular culture. ^ Johnson, Brian R., and Ruth S. Criminal Justice Review 38, no.
2 (2013): 190-206. ^ (2008-01-29). The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-01-29. Liptak, Adam (2008-01-29). The New York Times.
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San Francisco, California: Shaping San Francisco. Retrieved 2018-12-13. Morgan, Willis D. Cornell Law Review, 12.2, February 1927, p. 153.
Eric Helland and Alexander Tabarrok. The Journal of Law and Economics 2004; 47(1), 93-122. DOI: 10.1086/378694. ^ Watson J, Labe LJ. In: The Law of Miscellaneous and Commercial Surety Bonds. Kazlow, Bruce C.
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October 2016. Retrieved 10 July 2017. Nevada Revised Statutes. Nevada State Legislature.
Retrieved 10 July 2017. (PDF). Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Bureau of Justice Statistics. November 2007. Archived from (PDF) on 2012-11-04. Retrieved 2012-08-15. Contrada, Fred (25 March 2014).
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(PDF). (PDF).Further reading.
Local Surety In Bail Laws
F. Devine, Commercial Bail Bonding: A Comparison of Common Law Alternatives (New York: Praeger, 1991).External links. Time on McDonough Bros.
Bail-bond firm, which had existed for 50 years in San Francisco. (subscription required).
NPR, 2010/01/21.