It will come as no surprise that people will not do jail time if they can possibly avoid it. Fortunately, the American legal system does allow many criminal suspects arrested for common or non-violent crimes to post bail and avoid jail time until the court decides otherwise. In simple words, a bail bond is cash, property, or any other valuable asset you can give to a court to ensure that you will appear in court whenever needed. If you fail to show up for a hearing, you will forfeit the bail and the court will issue a warrant for your arrest. At this point, it is worth noting that bail bond prices generally vary from one state to another. Here is some more information on this topic:
How Bail is Set
Before looking at the general price ranges for bail bonds, it is important to have a good grasp of how they are set to begin with. Throughout the United States, judges set bail. Nevertheless, you can ask a judge to lower a bail bond if you feel that it is too high. Take note that the Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution discourages excessive bail. This is because the aim of bail is to allow a suspect to remain free until proven guilty and jailed or proven innocent and set free. It is not unusual for defendants to typically pay bail bond agents or firms 10% of the bond set by judge.
Price Ranges for Bail Bonds
In general, bail is set by judges who usually initially refer to what is termed a bail schedule. These schedules are also occasionally posted in jails, depending where you are in the US. If you were to look at one of these schedules you might discover that the bail for a major crime can be anywhere from five to ten times higher than the amount set for a lesser or misdemeanor crime. In other words, the more serious the offense, the higher the bail is likely to be. However, the actual amount determined will be at the judge’s discretion.
Something to keep in mind is that in some states, private bail bondsmen are either not permitted, or are rare. According to aboutbail.com, these states include Wisconsin, Oregon, Massachusetts, Kentucky, Illinois, and the District of Columbia, and only rarely in the states of Nebraska and Maine. These states still have bail, just not private bail bonds agencies doing this as a business.
In the state of Delaware, you should expect to pay 10% of whatever your bail is set. So, for example, if your bail is set at $2,500, the fee you would pay to the bail bondsman charging 10% would be $250. Anyone in our state who charges less (and there are those who have been seen charging 5%, which has resulted in allowing potentially dangerous individuals go free far too easily. For a sad example of this, see this article from DelawareOnline.) is acting against the rates set by the Delaware Department of Insurance. And, if someone you know thinks that perhaps they can get a “cheaper” rate by shopping across the border in Maryland, they should think again, because Maryland also has set the rate at 10%.
In general, bail prices can range anywhere from several thousand to hundreds of thousands of dollars. In some rare cases, judges can set bail at extremely high amounts for the sole purpose of keeping suspects in jail until a case is resolved according to an article published by nolo.com, which cites the example of United States v. Salerno, 481 U.S. 739 (1987).
In conclusion, the price for a bail bond varies across the states, from a few thousand dollars to more than a million dollars.
To see and read the Delaware Rules of Conduct for Bail Agents and Property Bail Agents, Click Here.
To see and read Title 18, Insurance Code, Subchapter II about Delaware Bail Bond Agents, Click Here.
How Bail is Set
Before looking at the general price ranges for bail bonds, it is important to have a good grasp of how they are set to begin with. Throughout the United States, judges set bail. Nevertheless, you can ask a judge to lower a bail bond if you feel that it is too high. Take note that the Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution discourages excessive bail. This is because the aim of bail is to allow a suspect to remain free until proven guilty and jailed or proven innocent and set free. It is not unusual for defendants to typically pay bail bond agents or firms 10% of the bond set by judge.
Price Ranges for Bail Bonds
In general, bail is set by judges who usually initially refer to what is termed a bail schedule. These schedules are also occasionally posted in jails, depending where you are in the US. If you were to look at one of these schedules you might discover that the bail for a major crime can be anywhere from five to ten times higher than the amount set for a lesser or misdemeanor crime. In other words, the more serious the offense, the higher the bail is likely to be. However, the actual amount determined will be at the judge’s discretion.
Something to keep in mind is that in some states, private bail bondsmen are either not permitted, or are rare. According to aboutbail.com, these states include Wisconsin, Oregon, Massachusetts, Kentucky, Illinois, and the District of Columbia, and only rarely in the states of Nebraska and Maine. These states still have bail, just not private bail bonds agencies doing this as a business.
In the state of Delaware, you should expect to pay 10% of whatever your bail is set. So, for example, if your bail is set at $2,500, the fee you would pay to the bail bondsman charging 10% would be $250. Anyone in our state who charges less (and there are those who have been seen charging 5%, which has resulted in allowing potentially dangerous individuals go free far too easily. For a sad example of this, see this article from DelawareOnline.) is acting against the rates set by the Delaware Department of Insurance. And, if someone you know thinks that perhaps they can get a “cheaper” rate by shopping across the border in Maryland, they should think again, because Maryland also has set the rate at 10%.
In general, bail prices can range anywhere from several thousand to hundreds of thousands of dollars. In some rare cases, judges can set bail at extremely high amounts for the sole purpose of keeping suspects in jail until a case is resolved according to an article published by nolo.com, which cites the example of United States v. Salerno, 481 U.S. 739 (1987).
In conclusion, the price for a bail bond varies across the states, from a few thousand dollars to more than a million dollars.
To see and read the Delaware Rules of Conduct for Bail Agents and Property Bail Agents, Click Here.
To see and read Title 18, Insurance Code, Subchapter II about Delaware Bail Bond Agents, Click Here.