How Does Bail Work in Criminal Defense Cases?

If you’ve been charged with a crime, one of your first thoughts is likely how to get out of jail. A criminal defense attorney in San Antonio can help you figure out the ins and outs of bail in your case; keep reading for a general overview of how it works here in Texas.

How Does Bail Work in Criminal Defense Cases?

Hearing

The first step in this process happens when, after your arrest, you are taken before a magistrate for an initial hearing at which bail is set. At this point, the amount of the bail will also be decided.

For misdemeanor crimes, most of the time bail is set according to standards already within the law, and you likely won’t even have to attend a hearing. If you’re being charged with a felony, the amount will usually be based on the seriousness of the crime with which you’re being charged, though there are some other factors taken into account. The court will look at past behavior, whether you’ve been charged before, and your ties to the community when deciding on bail.

Requesting Less

Once your bail amount has been set, the next step is whether you want to request a lower bail amount or not. This requires a special hearing to assess whether a reduction in the bail is an appropriate step. This is where you really want a qualified criminal defense attorney on your side. Your attorney is going to argue for why you are not a flight risk and explain why you can be trusted to show up for court.

Your best bet for getting bail lowered will be if you have strong ties to the area and have a stable job and family in the local area. If you frequently leave the state, if you don’t have any strong community ties to Texas, and if you have enough money that you could potentially flee, the state is likely to charge a much higher bail.

Posting the Bail

One scale has been set, it must be paid before you can be released. You can do this in one of two ways. First, you can pay the cash yourself, if you have it or a family member does. If you don’t, you can work with a bail bondsman. Bail bond companies operate by agreeing with you to post the bail on your behalf and charge you a fee, which is commonly 10% of the total bail amount. There are conditions, however, and if you fail to appear in court, these conditions will come into play. The precise conditions will depend on your case details.

In some cases, the court will accept a home or vehicle as collateral instead of money. Talk with your lawyer about the best thing for your situation.

Following Bail Conditions

If you are allowed to post bail, which most people can, you will be given some conditions, and you will need to abide by these conditions in order to stay out of jail until your trial.

The conditions will vary by the specific case, but in general, you have to agree to appear in court at certain times, you must not commit any crimes, you have to meet with the bail bondsman at certain intervals or check in by phone, and you may be forbidden to do certain things that were a part of the crime you’re being charged with. For example, if you were being charged with a DUI, you may not be allowed to drink.

Getting It Back

If you show up for court as required, your bail will be returned to you in full. If you got your bail money through a bondsman, the 10% fee will not be returned to you regardless of the outcome of your case. However, the rest will all be returned once you have appeared in court as required.

FAQ About Bail

1. What Is Bail, and Why Does It Exist if I’m Innocent Until Proven Guilty?

Bail exists so that a person accused of an offense does not have to remain behind bars until their case is resolved. This is allowed precisely because a person is presumed innocent until proven guilty, and forcing them to spend months in jail before trial would place an enormous burden on their life that they should not bear until it is proven they are actually guilty.

However, society also has a vested interest in requiring accused persons to meet their accusers and either mount a successful defense or answer for their behavior, in the interests of public justice. Thus, bail exists to provide a way both for the accused to continue living their life as normally as possible until the case is resolved and give society a way to guarantee that accused persons will not just disappear (which would be an encouragement to crime generally).

2. What Is Personal Recognizance?

With the personal recognizance bond, sometimes called a PR bond, you don’t have to pay any money up front. This is occasionally allowed to defendants you have no criminal history and strong evidence of dependable behavior. In this case, you would not owe any money to begin with, but if you fail to appear in court as required, you would then have to pay the amount of the bond.

3. What If I put my Home Up?

If you choose to post bail using a property bond, you are pledging real property, such as your house, instead of money. The first step here is to show that you have enough equity in your home to pay off the bail. Equity is a real estate term that refers to the amount of the property that you actually own outright – i.e. the amount that you have paid off on your mortgage – as opposed to what you still owe. Normally, the amount of the equity needs to be at least the amount of the bail that’s being charged.

You’ll have to provide the court with all the documentation related to your home, and the court will then make a decision. If they choose to accept your property bond, they will put a lien on your property. A lien is a legal document that grants an entity, in this case the court, the right to take your property under certain conditions (in this case, the property owner not showing up for court). Once you do show up for all required court appearances, the lien on your property will be dropped.

4. What Can a Criminal Defense Attorney in San Antonio Do for Me?

It’s important to get an attorney on your side as soon as possible. You will want the help of an attorney not only to defend you in the court case, but also to help you get a bail amount that you can afford so that you can go back to your life as soon as possible. Your attorney will be familiar with the laws and also with the local courts and will know the right way to make an appeal on your behalf.

If you’ve been charged with a crime, contact us at Hoelscher Gebbia Cepeda PLLC in San Antonio right away for help. We have a long track record of success in helping clients, and we will work aggressively for you.