Bail Blog
12/10/2012
There are many reasons people get arrested. When that happens, they are taken to the county jail and go through what is called the booking process. Their fingerprints are taken and their personal possessions, such as watches and wallets, will be taken from them, inventoried and kept by the jailer. They will be searched for drugs and weapons.
A computer search will be conducted to discover if the person arrested (arrestee) has any other warrants in any jurisdiction or if the arrestee has any prior convictions. Depending on the size of the facility and number of people to be booked, the process can take from a few minutes up to a few hours.
Telephone call from jail
After the booking process, arrestees are jailed. They may have access to a pay phone or be allowed to use a jailhouse phone. If they call you, you need to get all possible information because you will not be allowed to call back if you forget something. You need to know where the person is being held and whether or not bail has been set.
Depending on the severity of the alleged crime, bail may be set at the time of booking. If not, it will be set at the arraignment. An arraignment is a court hearing which, in most jurisdictions, must be held within two business days of the arrest. At this hearing, the judge informs the arrested person of the charges he or she is facing and the arrestee is now a defendant. The judge decides whether or not to set bail and, if so, how much it will be.
Posting bail
The purpose of bail is to give defendants an incentive to show up for court hearings. If bail is set at $10,000 and defendants know that they or their family will lose $10,000 if they flee and do not show up for court, they are more likely to make their scheduled court appearances.
Most defendants cannot afford to pay cash, so they contact a bail bonds agency. The agency arranges for release of defendants upon payment in cash of usually 10 to 20 percent of the amount set for bail. After reviewing defendant’s financial situation and that of family members willing to vouch for them, collateral may or may not be required in an amount to cover the remainder.
Cowboy Bail Bonds is here to help you. Let our family help your family, we will guide you through the entire bail process and make sure that you or your family member will be released as soon as possible. For any bond, any jail, any time, call Cowboy Bail Bonds today at 214-716-5029 in Dallas, 972-696-0061 in Garland and 972-696-0089 in Irving. Let our family help your family!