The facts and the true connotations of a bail

Before going deeper into things related to such an important topic as bail, let us define this term and some of the basics. In modern law procedures bail is a sum of money, property, a bond or a waiver of payment deposited or pledged to a court in order to allow the defendant to be released from jail for the time of the court procedures. When bailed out the defendant states that he or she will arrive before the court at the appointed time for the court procedures. If a person fails to arrive at the specified moment, he or she will lose the deposited money and the possibility to be bailed out. In some serious cases involving violence, rape or drugs, the judge can set the bail sum at an impossibly high rate to avoid the release of a dangerous individual. The biggest problem in setting the bail amount is to define how dangerous the person will be for the society if he or she will be released.

 

In some cases there is always a possibility to reduce the appointed amount of bail or remove some of the bail conditions due to some external factors. When setting the bail amount the court usually examines the following information related to the defendant: physical and mental condition, financial resources, family ties, history relating to drug and alcohol abuse, criminal history, record concerning appearance at court proceedings and even length of residence in the community. The importance of any of these factors can vary from case to case and a judge or magistrate examines the nature and circumstances of the charges in every single case. Still in most of the countries there are a number of standard bails set for the most standard violations.

 

A bail usually requires the defendant to number of conditions like limit travel, maintain or seek employment, undergo drug and alcohol testing, medical, psychiatric, or psychological treatment, maintain or commence an educational program, comply with a curfew, refrain from excessive, use of alcohol or any use of narcotic drugs, remain in the custody of a designated person, comply with periodic check-ins with authorities, refrain from possession of a firearm, refrain from contact with crime victim or others designated by the court, execute a bond agreement with the court or a solvent surety in an amount as is reasonably necessary to ensure the defendant's appearance, agree to other reasonable conditions the court may impose to ensure a defendant's appearance depending on the case.

 

If the defendant is detained at a bail hearing, he or she can apply to a higher court for a review of the bail. The review of the transcript of proceedings from the bail hearing usually take a week or longer but as a result the conditions of bail can be changed. The result of the review will also depend on the case and on the information related to the defendant. For example in a domestic assault case, the defendant may seek to remove the no-contact condition, so that he can reunite with at least part of his family.

 

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