Bail Bonds Depend on a Lot

Bail bonds are the only way an individual accused of a crime can be freed from jail prior to court proceedings. Because of this, a lot of factors must be attached to the decision of how much to set bail for.
Bail bonds are monetary guarantees required by the court in order for an accused defendant to be released from custody while awaiting trial. The defendant must either pay the entire amount of produce a deposit to a bondman up front. The bondsman is then able to issue the bond for the full amount with the promise of the money being returned by the court once the individual appears in court.
Because bail bonds allow a defendant to walk free and also make it his or her personal responsibility to appear in court at a later date, it is necessary to ensure that the amount required by the judge be appropriate based on a number of related factors.
First and foremost, the amount of a bond must equate to the severity of the crime. Lesser, non-violent crimes allow for more leniency for the accused and typically carry a lower bond. Violent felonies and crimes resulting in death, on the other hand, may not give the person the option of paying for freedom. These defendants are often remanded into custody without the possibility of being bailed out, or have the price of their freedom set extremely high.
In conjunction with the level of severity of the crime, the financial assets of the defendant are also taken into consideration. Those with more assets available can have their bond set at a level that reflects their ability to pay depending on the crime. Similarly, those with diminished financial capabilities can see the it reduced accordingly as well.
Of course, both of these factors are taken into account when determining the flight risk of the individual, which is typically the single biggest factor of all in setting bail bonds. Regardless of the crimes in question, the purpose of bond is to allow an individual freedom before he is legally obligated to return to court to stand trial.
For more severe crimes, the risk of flight is always high regardless of the person’s financial resources simply because the potential for significant prison time awaits. At the same time, those with financial resources are able to flee more easily through the use of their assets. For either of these reasons, or any others that may indicate a risk of flight, the amounts required for freedom are always adjusted accordingly.
These factors and others that may be unique to each case always affect how bail bonds are set. Ultimately, however, they are always left up to the discretion of the presiding judge and may be adjusted accordingly.