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The Bail System |
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The
bail
system
is
designed
to
guarantee
the
appearance
of a
criminal
defendant
in
court
at
the
time
the
judge
directs.
To
be
released
on
cash
bail,
an
individual
must
post
with
the
court
the
total
amount
of
the
bail,
in
cash,
to
secure
his
or
her
return
to
court
on
an
appointed
date,
and
thereafter,
until
the
case
is
concluded.
Many
people
do
not
have
the
cash
on
hand,
or
available
to
them.
An
alternative
to
cash
bail
is
the
posting
of a
surety
bond.
What
we
do
is
post
these
surety
bonds.
This
process
involves
a
contractual
undertaking
guaranteed
by
an
admitted
insurance
company
having
adequate
assets
to
satisfy
the
face
value
of
the
bond.
The
bail
agent
guarantees
to
the
court
that
they
will
pay
the
bond
forfeiture,
if a
defendant
fails
to
appear
for
their
scheduled
court
appearance.
The
bail
agent’s
guarantee
is
made
through
a
surety
company.
For
this
service,
the
defendant
is
charged
a
premium.
The
amount
charged
to
the
guarantor
is
10
percent,
the
legal
rate
regulated
by
the
Department
of
Insurance.
To
be
released
pursuant
to
the
posting
of a
surety
bond,
the
arrestee,
or a
relative
or a
friend
of
the
arrestee,
typically
contacts
a
bail
agent,
an
individual
licensed
by
the
State
of
California
to
post
surety
bonds.
Prior
to
the
posting
of a
surety
bond,
the
bail
agent
undertakes
a
detailed
interview,
as
well
as a
complete
application
of
the
proposed
guarantor
(indemnitor).
Many
times
credit
is
extended
to
the
guarantor
who
agrees
to
make
predetermined
payments
to
our
company.
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