How Does A Bail Bond Work?

by | Aug 6, 2014 | Law

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When someone is arrested for some reason they may be given the opportunity by the court to post bail for their temporary freedom. Bail is an amount of money demanded by the court, when paid the person is free to leave the court until the date of a hearing or trial. The idea of making a payment to the court is that it acts as a guarantee that the accused will show up in court on any future dates that are set. There are times when the amount specified by the court is more than the arrested individual can raise either personally or by another party. In cases like this a bail bond in Mason City Iowa prove useful as they only have to put up a percentage of the bail and the bail bonding agency puts up the balance. When the accused does appear in court the amount of bail is normally refunded in full, the money is given to the bonding agency; they get their money back and keep the percentage originally put up by the accused as its profit.

Bail may e set against a schedule or at a bail hearing, it depends to a large extent on the severity of the crime the individual is accused of committing. In some cases a bail hearing is heard at the same time as the arraignment, this is when the accused is asked to enter a plea. It is important that the incentive to return to court is commensurate with the crime so in many cases the court sets the amount based on the seriousness of the charges. The bail that is set by the court normally set low enough that it is worth posting to avoid spending time in jail and high enough to want it back by appearing in court in the future.

As one can see it is easy for the accused to find him in a situation where a bail bond in Mason City Iowa is necessary.

Bail bonds are normally available at any time of the day or night. The person accused of a crime often needs to gain freedom to provide for his or her family or prepare for the upcoming trial. Bail bonds are also helpful when it comes to reducing the jail population as well as lowering the cost of maintaining the prisoner.

Although the bondsman puts up the bail in some cases the amount must be supported by collateral. The bonding agency is taking a risk that the accused will not show up in court resulting in forfeiture of the bail amount.

If you have been arrested and accused of committing a crime then you may need to get a bail bond in Mason City Iowa to gain your temporary freedom. If this is the case you are invited to contact Liberty Bail Bonds.