If I'm Charged with a Federal Crime, Do I Need a Bail Bondsman to Get Released From Custody?
As it stands now in 2020, you do not need a bail bondsman. You typically will never need a bail bondsman in a federal criminal case, unless somehow your bond is set that way, where a bond is posted by a bail bondsman.
You won't normally need a bail bondsman in a federal criminal case, unless your bond is set that way by the judge.
But typically, in a federal criminal case, what ends up happening is the government can order for you to be detained if they believe you're a flight risk or a danger to the community.
Usually where I see people getting detained is where they're looking at a mandatory minimum of 10 years, for example.
That's a pretty good argument by the government that the person might not show back up again facing all that time.
If the judge detains you then you can't get out. Your attorney can file a motion to reconsider with that judge, or you could file a motion to reconsider what the judge you end up getting assigned to after you appear in front of the magistrate judge in federal court.
Signature Bond
The other ways you can get out though aside from posting a bond with the bondsman, which is usually not applicable in a federal criminal case, is they can have you do what's called a signature bond.
This is where either you or a relative or a friend signs something saying that if you don't show up , they will pay that amount of money.
For example, a $25,000.00 signature bond signed by you or someone else or a combination of different people, would assure that you appear.
If you don't appear, then the government could collect on that $25,000.00 from whoever signs. That's probably the easiest and most effective way to get out of custody without having to shell out any money.
Property or Cash Bond
Another thing is called a property bond. That's where you have a piece of property that has equity in it and you use that equity to get out.
They basically make you deed that property over for the amount of the property bond that the judge decides.
For example, if you posted a $100,000.00 property bond, then whatever property you were using would have to have at least $100,000.00 in equity. That property would be deeded over to the court.
The court would basically have a lien against the property and if you didn't show up to court in the future, they could conceivably make the property be sold and take out the $100,000.00. So, that's another way I've seen bonds being dealt with.
You could also have a cash bond, where you have to post some cash or money with the government in order to secure your release.
I've also seen a combination of a property bond and a cash bond. I've seen multiple signature bonds. So, there's a whole bunch of different ways.
Assuring the Court You Will Show Up in Court
You need a federal attorney to argue for you to get released on a bond that will assure the court you are not a flight risk.
This is why you need an attorney on your behalf to argue for you to either get you simply release — released on a signature bond or released on some other form of assurance that the court believes that you're not going to be a flight risk.
They need to know you're going to show up for court — and also, you're going to have to get around the argument that you're a danger to the community.
Really, the factors that you're looking at when they're talking about posting bail are, how long have you lived in the community? Do you have a job here? Do you own property here? Is your family here?
They're really trying to assess whether or not you're going to run away from the case, in which case the government wouldn't be able to prosecute you.
If enough time went by, it could conceivably damage the government's case against you. That's why they want to make sure that they assure your appearance, and obviously, the easiest way to do that is by way of detaining you so you can't get out.
So, that's why you want to hire a federal criminal defense attorney to fight for you so you can get out of custody.
Hedding Law Firm is a criminal defense law firm located in Los Angeles County at 16000 Ventura Blvd #1208 Encino, CA 91436. Contact us for a free case evaluation at (213) 542-0994.
Related:
Status of Posting Federal Property Bonds in Criminal Cases