In Orange County California, it is not strange to hear that a criminal defendant was arrested and then released within hours or a couple of days on bail. Usually the bail amount is quite high ranging from tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars but may go as high as a million dollars depending on the nature of the criminal offense as well as jurisdictional differences.
The question that begs is how the criminal defendant manages to raise such amount within such short periods. The answer is dealing with an Orange County bail bonds agent. Nevertheless, how do bail bonds work? The following are the steps from start to completion.Step 1: Contacting the bail company Soon following arrest, the defendant will be given the opportunity to contact a relative. This relative will have to contact a Santa Ana bail bonds company. It is usually done through a phone call. A representative (bail agent or bails bondsman) of that company will collect some standard information about the criminal defendant and his or her situation. Such information will help the company assess the risks involved.
Step 2: Beginning the application process Once the bail agent has assessed the risk, he or she will start the approval process. The agent will be interested in knowing the severity of the charge, when the arrest was made, your relationship to the defendant and how long you have known them, your assets (such home), your current employer and how long you have been employed among other questions. For instance, if the defendant was arrested in Costa Mesa, a licensed agent with Bail Bonds Costa Mesa will be contacted. The agent will tell you the terms and conditions of the bond purchase. You will then be required to sign necessary paperwork including bail bonds application, Indemnity Agreement as well as receipt for the transaction. This paperwork can be processed electronically through email or fax in minutes. Alternatively, the bail bondsman may meet the client at the Santa Ana jail premises or a picked location.
Step 3: Finalizing the process After successful completion of the paperwork, the bail agent will post or file the bond with the responsible law enforcement agency. The defendant will then be released. The time taken for the release to happen depends on the particular Orange County Jail but the bail company will need about 1-2 hours from start to finish. The bail company will charge you a bond fee, which is 10% of the bail amount, as stipulated by the law. If the suspect has been accused of drunk driving, the next step would be to contact an Orange County DUI lawyer. That’s it. If everything plays out well, the criminal defendant will be released pending hearing of his or her case. This will give the defendant enough time to organize his or her affairs and get the best legal representation.
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