Remaining In Jail Due To Inability To Post Bail

Being in LA county jail is very stressful as well as frustrating. However, it is even more frustrating if you stay in jail due to one main reason – because of the simple fact that you were unable to post bail. Well, you will be genuinely surprised, but too many people remain behind bars namely because of thit reason.

The official statistical data clearly demonstrates that nearly a third of all people who are spending time in Los Angeles County Jail before being officially convicted, are there because they were unable to post bail. Of course, it is a pretty disturbing situation, so the lawmakers are currently working on coming up with a proper and effective solution to this issue.

So what is bail exactly? Well, it is a sort of an agreement that is being made between the court and the defendant. The court agrees to release the defendant in case he or she will be able to post a certain amount of money as bail. The defendant, on the other hand, will agree to return to the court on the named date. Once the defendant appears in court on that date, he or she is going to get that money back.

This is How Bail Works

For instance, the defendant may need to pay $10 000 as bail. Should he or she pay $10 000, they will be released from Los Angeles County Jail. The defendant will be obliged to return to court on a certain date and once he or she does, he or she is going to get those $10 000 back. This is going to happen even in case he or she is convicted during the trial. Nevertheless, should the defendant miss the court date, he or she is going to automatically lose the $10 000 and a warrant for his or her arrest will be issued. In case the defendant does not have that kind of money and therefore is unable to post bail, he or she will remain in jail.

Not being able to post bail is a major issue for most people indeed. After all, it may take weeks or even months for the trial to begin and you will be forced to remain behind bars during this entire time. Hence, people are often using bail bonds in order to make sure that they are not going to remain in jail for that long.

Nevertheless, the main issue is the fact that those bail bond services may demand up to 30% of bail as their fees. This sum will not be returned to you even if you are going to be exonerated completely. It is still a pretty large sum and the vast majority of people simply will not be able to afford. This is why the lawmakers are trying to come up with new and more efficient alternatives.

When Do You Need Bail

In case a person is arrested, the law enforcement officers are going to book him or her in jail right away. During that time, the individual’s personal information, his or her photos as well as fingerprints are going to be sent to the police computer database. In addition, all of their personal items will be impounded, the arrested person will need to submit himself to a sobriety test. Furthermore, it can be a second sobriety test in case the arrested individual was arrested due to the fact that he or she failed the last one. Finally, the arrested person will be provided with an opportunity to make a single phone call and will then be sent in jail cell. He or she will need to wait for the court hearing, during which the judge will set bail. The hearing generally takes place within 48 hours after the arrest.

In most cases, different jurisdictions are setting certain amounts of bail for certain committed crimes. This means that one jurisdiction may post a $20 000 bail for a felony. Such crimes usually imply 3 years sentence. However, all cases are different, so it does not necessarily imply that you will need to pay that much money. The judge often takes into consideration various additional circumstances and the amount of bail may be lowered indeed.

Yet, in case the defendant already has an extensive criminal history, the judge may consider that he or she is posing a flight risk. Hence, the amount of bail may be increased or the judge may even deem it necessary to revoke the very notion of bail in this case and for that particular defendant. In some cases, the amount of bail will be set immediately after the person was booked and processed. However, this mostly happens in case the crime was not too severe. Hence, the arresting officer will let the defendant know if he or she will be able to post bail and whether he or she will be able to pay with their credit cards.

Bail Bonds

Bail bonds are very much similar to bank loans – you are looking for a lender that will provide you with the necessary amount of money. You are going to invest a small percentage of your own funds first and then the lender will provide you with the rest. For instance, in case the amount of bail will be $20 000, the defendant’s family members will need to invest $3000 in deposit and the lender will then provide them with those $20 000. Furthermore, in the vast majority of cases, you will be required to provide the lender with collateral. Collateral could consist of a car, a house, some valuable jewelry and so on. Collateral is used in order to make sure that even if the defendant will not appear in court, the lender is not going to lose the money and will get valuable possessions instead.

If you do not have an ability to get the money for your bail, it is very important to find a qualified attorney who is an expert in Los Angeles criminal defense. He will be able to come up with a good defense strategy to reduce or dismiss your criminal charges.

The Los Angeles Criminal Defense Experts