法律英语：91 Posting Bail and Bail Bonds

by Michael W. Flynn
First, a disclaimer: Although I am an attorney, the legal information in this podcast is not intended to be a substitute for seeking personalized legal advice from an attorney licensed² to practice in your jurisdiction³. Further, I do not intend to create an attorney-client relationship with any listener.

Today’s topic is bail⁴ and bonds. Diana wrote:

Would you please explain the bail system - how much is paid if a bail bondsman is used, when bail is paid, what happens after verdict, and who keeps the bail money if a suspect fails to make an appearance.

None of us wants to go to jail or deal with the criminal justice system any more than we must. The good news is that, even if you are arrested, you are in most cases not required to sit in jail while you await your trial. You may post a bail, and remain free. The bad news is, the bail might cost quite a bit.

Bail is some form of property or money deposited to a court so that the court will release a criminal suspect from jail. The understanding is that the suspect will return for pretrial appearances and trial or forfeit⁵ the bail (and also be guilty of the crime of failure to appear, or subject to criminal contempt). In most cases bail money will be returned at the end of the trial, if all court appearances are made, regardless of whether the person is found guilty or not guilty of the crime accused. If the suspect fails to appear, the court keeps the money.

The purpose of bail is to allow people to continue to live their lives while under suspicion of a crime. The suspect needs to work, contribute to his community, care for his family, and generally function in society.

The Eighth Amendment⁷ prohibits excessive bail, but the precise amount of bail required depends on a variety of circumstances including the risk of flight associated with the suspect, the suspect’s criminal history, the nature of the crime, the severity of the crime, the danger the suspect might pose to the public, the suspect’s family relationships, who will assist the suspect in appearing in court, employment status, employment history, and other factors. The point is to assign a bail amount that fits the crime, and will provide a reasonable incentive⁸ for the suspect to cooperate with the criminal justice system. Some suspects, such as those accused of crimes punishable by the death penalty, cannot post bail pending⁹ trial – they must sit in jail.

Bail is set in different ways by different states and counties. In some places, there is a simple table with standard bail amounts for each crime. In others, there is more wiggle room, and the factors listed above are taken into consideration by a judge at a bail hearing.

After the bail amount is set, the suspect must pay that amount, or sit in jail to await trial. If you have the money to pay the bail, you simply pay and go. But, many criminal suspects cannot afford the bail amount. So, the suspect must engage the services of a bond agent. A bond agent is not employed by Her Majesty¹⁰, does not carry a license¹ to kill, and does not flirt¹¹ with Moneypenny. A bond agent is the generic¹² term for an organization that will put up the money needed for your bond in exchange for a fee. The fee is typically 10% of the total bond. So, if bail is set at $100,000, and you have $10,000, you can leave prison that night because the bond agent will guarantee the rest of the money to the court in the event that you flee, or fail to appear in court. The bond agent will need collateral¹³ against the money, and so the suspect might offer a mortgage on a house, or title to a car, or some other valuable item such as jewelry¹⁴.

After your trial, regardless of your guilt⁶ or innocence¹⁵, the bond agent keeps the $10,000 as payment for agreeing to be liable for the total amount of your bond to the court.

In the end, you do not want to learn the bail system from the inside if you can avoid it. Jail is no fun.

Thank you for listening to Legal Lad’s Quick and Dirty Tips for a More Lawful¹⁶ Life. Be sure to take the short listener survey by clicking on the green 5 to the right of the transcript¹⁷.

You can send questions and comments to。。。。。。or call them in to the voicemail line at 206-202-4LAW. Please note that doing so will not create an attorney-client relationship and will be used for the purposes of this podcast only.

 

1 license   

n.执照，许可证，特许；v.许可，特许

参考例句：

• The foreign guest has a license on the person.这个外国客人随身携带执照。
• The driver was arrested for having false license plates on his car.司机由于使用假车牌而被捕。

2 licensed   

adj.得到许可的v.许可，颁发执照(license的过去式和过去分词)

参考例句：

• The new drug has not yet been licensed in the US. 这种新药尚未在美国获得许可。
• Is that gun licensed? 那支枪有持枪执照吗？

3 jurisdiction   

n.司法权，审判权，管辖权，控制权

参考例句：

• It doesn't lie within my jurisdiction to set you free.我无权将你释放。
• Changzhou is under the jurisdiction of Jiangsu Province.常州隶属江苏省。

4 bail   

v.舀（水），保释；n.保证金，保释，保释人

参考例句：

• One of the prisoner's friends offered to bail him out.犯人的一个朋友答应保释他出来。
• She has been granted conditional bail.她被准予有条件保释。

5 forfeit   

vt.丧失；n.罚金，罚款，没收物

参考例句：

• If you continue to tell lies,you will forfeit the good opinion of everyone.你如果继续撒谎，就会失掉大家对你的好感。
• Please pay for the forfeit before you borrow book.在你借书之前请先付清罚款。

6 guilt   

n.犯罪；内疚；过失，罪责

参考例句：

• She tried to cover up her guilt by lying.她企图用谎言掩饰自己的罪行。
• Don't lay a guilt trip on your child about schoolwork.别因为功课责备孩子而使他觉得很内疚。

7 amendment   

n.改正，修正，改善，修正案

参考例句：

• The amendment was rejected by 207 voters to 143.这项修正案以207票对143票被否决。
• The Opposition has tabled an amendment to the bill.反对党已经就该议案提交了一项修正条款。

8 incentive   

n.刺激；动力；鼓励；诱因；动机

参考例句：

• Money is still a major incentive in most occupations.在许多职业中，钱仍是主要的鼓励因素。
• He hasn't much incentive to work hard.他没有努力工作的动机。

9 pending   

prep.直到，等待…期间；adj.待定的；迫近的

参考例句：

• The lawsuit is still pending in the state court.这案子仍在州法庭等待定夺。
• He knew my examination was pending.他知道我就要考试了。

10 majesty   

n.雄伟，壮丽，庄严，威严；最高权威，王权

参考例句：

• The king had unspeakable majesty.国王有无法形容的威严。
• Your Majesty must make up your mind quickly!尊贵的陛下，您必须赶快做出决定！

11 flirt   

v.调情，挑逗，调戏；n.调情者，卖俏者

参考例句：

• He used to flirt with every girl he met.过去他总是看到一个姑娘便跟她调情。
• He watched the stranger flirt with his girlfriend and got fighting mad.看着那个陌生人和他女朋友调情，他都要抓狂了。

12 generic   

adj.一般的，普通的，共有的

参考例句：

• I usually buy generic clothes instead of name brands.我通常买普通的衣服，不买名牌。
• The generic woman appears to have an extraordinary faculty for swallowing the individual.一般妇女在婚后似乎有特别突出的抑制个性的能力。

13 collateral   

adj.平行的；旁系的；n.担保品

参考例句：

• Many people use personal assets as collateral for small business loans.很多人把个人财产用作小额商业贷款的抵押品。
• Most people here cannot borrow from banks because they lack collateral.由于拿不出东西作为抵押，这里大部分人无法从银行贷款。

14 jewelry   

n.（jewllery）（总称）珠宝

参考例句：

• The burglars walked off with all my jewelry.夜盗偷走了我的全部珠宝。
• Jewelry and lace are mostly feminine belongings.珠宝和花边多数是女性用品。

15 innocence   

n.无罪；天真；无害

参考例句：

• There was a touching air of innocence about the boy.这个男孩有一种令人感动的天真神情。
• The accused man proved his innocence of the crime.被告人经证实无罪。

16 lawful   

adj.法律许可的，守法的，合法的

参考例句：

• It is not lawful to park in front of a hydrant.在消火栓前停车是不合法的。
• We don't recognised him to be the lawful heir.我们不承认他为合法继承人。

17 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。