The Bail Process

The phrase "innocent until proven guilty" might make us think that a defendant will only be jailed once the government can prove his or her guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.  Not so.  American's who are arrested for crimes are often held in custody for months, and sometimes years while awaiting a disposition in their case.

Often, when someone is arrested for a minor offense, they are released and ordered to appear in court at a later date.  For more serious offenses, however, defendants are often kept in custody during the court process.  The government may keep a person in custody to 1) assure that person's presence in court, and 2) to protect the public.  Luckily, pretrial detainees generally have a right to bail. 

Again, in a system that claims that people are "innocent until proven guilty," it certainly seems unfair that defendants are locked up, and forced to pay money before a court has found any evidence of the defendant's guilt.  Each county in California has a bail schedule, outlining the required bail amount for a specified offense.  Sometimes judges will set bail based on a defendant's charges, criminal history, facts of the case and other factors.  Bail can be denied in certain circumstances, or can be set prohibitively high.  Defendants have a right to challenge the bail at a bail hearing.  At a bail hearing, the judge may reduce bail or even release a defendant on his or her own recognizance (O.R.).  Additionally, the prosecutor may seek to raise bail, deny bail or restrict the source of funds to pay bail (for example, if the prosecutor suspects that the defendant's bail money would be coming from illegal profits).  At a bail hearing, the court assumes that the allegations against the defendant are true, further eroding the "innocent until proven guilty" ideals.

The good news is that your criminal defense lawyer can fight for you at a bail hearing, asking for a reduction or an OR release.  Additionally, having an attorney might stop you from having to go to court in some cases.  This might help to avoid increased bail or failures to appear, which will also lead to increased bail.

Bail is coercive.  In many cases, people plead guiltyin cases where they simply cannot afford the bail, often taking convictions for crimes they did not commit.  In these modern times, no one is really a flight risk, yet this process is used in order to coerce guilty pleas.  Defendants are offered deals where they will be released but have to take on other unfavorable terms.  This process is an abuse of defendants' trial rights.

If a defendant posts the full bail amount, he or she will be released pending a disposition of the case.  Win or lose, the defendant would get that money back.  But with bail often set too high for most people to pay in full, bail bonds services will post the full amount in exchange for a nonrefundable fee (usually around 10% of the total bail amount).

When a person has a warrant out for their arrest, the bail amount will typically have already been established before arrest or surrender.  Accordingly, someone with a warrant out for their arrest can prepare to post bail before surrendering to police or the court.  By having the full bail amount or a bail bondsman present at surrender, a defendant can be released within just a few hours of being taken into custody. 

It is important to note that in juvenile delinquency cases, bail is not a right.  Still, the process is similar to that of a bail hearing.  In juvenile cases, a "detention hearing" is held within two days of arrest to determine whether the juvenile will be released, released with supervision/conditions, removed from home and place in foster care or kept in juvenile detention while awaiting a disposition of their case.  The court will use the same factors (public safety and risk of flight) as well as considering the well-being of the juvenile in determining whether to release or detain a juvenile defendant.  While the juvenile and adult processes with respect to pretrial detention are similar, a juvenile cannot be required to post bail.

For more information on the bail process or any questions about your criminal case, contact my office for a free consultation.  Hiring a Los Angeles Criminal Defense Attorney before you bail out will give you a reduction with most bail bondsman from a 10% bond to 8%.

IMPORTANT LINKS:
LA Sheriff's Inmate Locator 
Los Angeles Superior Court  
Los Angeles Police Department
Los Angeles Felony Bail Schedule
Los Angeles Misdemeanor Bail Schedule

Nicholas M. Loncar, Esq. 
Los Angeles Criminal Defense Attorney
t: 213-375-3775 | f: 213-375-3099
Mobile: 323-803-4352 
[email protected]
1200 Wilshire Blvd | Suite 406
Los Angeles, CA | 90017
www.iDefendLosAngeles.com

By Nicholas Loncar

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