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Bail bondsman play an important role too. They're on the hook for the money, so they make sure the guy shows up to court and doesn't become a fugitive. And if h

Bail bondsman play an important role too. They're on the hook for the money, so they make sure the guy shows up to court and doesn't become a fugitive. And if he does flee, they go find him. Otherwise, the police and therefore taxpayers would have to do all these things themselves. I'm not saying this is the right system, I don't know, but if you're going to criticize it, you should at least acknowledge the reasonable arguments for it.

brendanw 9y ago
Losing a lot of money if you post your own bail is another big incentive to show up for court, but unlike most counties in the country, San Francisco does not allow an individual or their friends, family, or attorney to pay the bail. While there is a lot of criticism against the United States bail bonds industry, I am criticizing the specific corruption in San Francisco. For most crimes, it does not make sense to skip town or skip a court date. If the person gets pulled over for speeding, then he has new fines and potentially new charges. If you pay $100k bail out of your own pocket for a DUI, you are not going to flee the country to avoid court. There is no need for a bondsman. Hell, there is no need for a $100k bond. The $100k bond is the result of lobbying by the insurance industry that backs bail bondsman: "Indeed. Before ABC began lobbying, in 1990, commercial bail accounted for just 23 percent of pretrial releases, while release on recognizance accounted for 40 percent. Today, only 23 percent of those let go before trial are released on recognizance, while 49 percent must purchase commercial bail. Since 1990, average bail amounts have almost tripled for felony cases. Between 2004 and 2012, revenues of the ABC companies whose income comes almost entirely from bail increased 21 percent." (http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2014/06/bail-bond-prison-industry/ http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2014/06/bail-bond-prison...) The bigger savings to the taxpayer would be to reduce aggressive sentences and over-reaching laws. The prisoner per capita rate in the United States is the second highest in the world and 3x that of the countries with the highest rates in Europe (http://www.prisonstudies.org/highest-to-lowest/prison_population_rate?field_region_taxonomy_tid=All http://www.prisonstudies.org/highest-to-lowest/prison_popula...).

brendanw 9y ago

Losing a lot of money if you post your own bail is another big incentive to show up for court, but unlike most counties in the country, San Francisco does not allow an individual or their friends, family, or attorney to pay the bail. While there is a lot of criticism against the United States bail bonds industry, I am criticizing the specific corruption in San Francisco. For most crimes, it does not make sense to skip town or skip a court date. If the person gets pulled over for speeding, then he has new fines and potentially new charges. If you pay $100k bail out of your own pocket for a DUI, you are not going to flee the country to avoid court. There is no need for a bondsman. Hell, there is no need for a $100k bond. The $100k bond is the result of lobbying by the insurance industry that backs bail bondsman: "Indeed. Before ABC began lobbying, in 1990, commercial bail accounted for just 23 percent of pretrial releases, while release on recognizance accounted for 40 percent. Today, only 23 percent of those let go before trial are released on recognizance, while 49 percent must purchase commercial bail. Since 1990, average bail amounts have almost tripled for felony cases. Between 2004 and 2012, revenues of the ABC companies whose income comes almost entirely from bail increased 21 percent." (http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2014/06/bail-bond-prison-industry/ http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2014/06/bail-bond-prison...) The bigger savings to the taxpayer would be to reduce aggressive sentences and over-reaching laws. The prisoner per capita rate in the United States is the second highest in the world and 3x that of the countries with the highest rates in Europe (http://www.prisonstudies.org/highest-to-lowest/prison_population_rate?field_region_taxonomy_tid=All http://www.prisonstudies.org/highest-to-lowest/prison_popula...).