Bail Bonds Phoenix AZ

Once the defendant has gone through the booking process which will include seeing a judge, they will know how much the amount is for their bail. There are 2 major types of bonds. The first in a “Cash Only” bond. This is when the court requires that the total amount of the bond has to be paid to the court in full by “Cash Only”. The second and most common is a Secure Appearance Bond. A Secured Appearance Bond is a court granting permission for a bond company to assist you and present the court with a document that states that the total amount of the bond would be paid to the court should the defendant not show up to their court date or get re-arrested for similar charges while released on their current case.

Arizona is a collateral state which means that a bail bond company should require some form of collateral to secure the bond and at least equal to the bond amount. Most bond companies will accept cash, credit cards, bank transfers, vehicles, jewelry, and houses/property as a form of collateral to secure the bond. On top of the collateral, Arizona requires a fee of 10% of the bond with a minimum amount as payment for their services on Secure Bonds. Should you require a bond company to post your Cash Only bond, then the bond company can charge over the 10% fee.

The amount of the bail is determined at the initial appearance court date in front of the judge and can vary based on the charges and past history of the inmate.

The bond company reviews each person’s case to determine the risk to decide if they would consider posting a bond without collateral upfront. Posting a bond without collateral is called a “Signature Bond” and is approved in some cases with restrictions.

When the defendant misses a court appearance or “skips on their bail”, a bench warrant is issued for the person’s arrest. If this was done by accident then the defendant must contact their bond company to try and get a new court date set and have the warrant removed. If a new court date is not set then the bond company is obligated by law to attempt to arrest the individual. Once a warrant has been issued, the police are notified and will try to apprehend the defendant to place them back in custody. Should the police be successful then the bond will most likely be forfeited and the bond company will be responsible to pay the court in full the amount of the bond. This will require the collateral that the bond company was using to secure the bond to be sold or used to pay that forfeit. If the bond company is successful in apprehending the client and placing them back then there is an opportunity for the bond company to request the court to exonerate the bond or surrender only a portion of the bond reducing the amount that would be surrendered to the court. This is a big reason why communication with the bond company is so important.

The paperwork takes approximately 20-45 minutes, depending on the complexity of the transaction, and in most cases can be completed over the Internet. The release time can be one hour or less for local police stations and 6-12 hours in county jail. Please remember that these times are not guaranteed but are general time frames.

Any person which has been charged with a non-capital crime meaning any crime that might not consider the death penalty is generally entitled to bail. A Judge might place a hold on certain situations such as allowing a probation officer to approve a bond should the person arrested have a prior agreement with the court but in most cases, bail should be granted. The amount of bail can vary.

A criminal record can play into the bail amount but should not stop the judge from issuing a bond for the defendant.

A bond is a promise between the court and the defendant to appear at all of the court dates. The guilt or innocence of the case has no bearing on the bail bond. Once the judge has made a final ruling on the case and issued a letter of exoneration, the bond is no longer active. This letter would need to be supplied to the bail bond company and then any collateral that was being used to secure the bond can be released back to the party that supplied the collateral.