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Is bail consistently repaid after the trial?

by ollysb 13y ago

bradleyland 13y ago
Yes, and this is the basis for a sizable industry in the United States. The accused must post a bond to ensure that they will appear in court when scheduled. A bond is just an agreement backed by money. Fail to fulfill your end of the agreement, and you lose the money. Often, the accused do not have the financial means to satisfy their bond requirements. In this case, bail bondsmen put up the cash to satisfy the bond in exchange for a fee paid from the accused. This fee is non-refundable, and is usually some percentage of the actual bond amount. If the accused do not appear in court on their scheduled date, it is up to the bail bondsman to track them down and deliver them to the custody of law enforcement. The system is on the sketchy side, but it serves a purpose. Bail bondsmen have tremendous incentive to make sure their clients appear in court. In this way, they act as a kind of outsourced private detective in charge of keeping track of people who are out on bond. Their business model works because bond amounts are paid back when the accused appears in court. In reality, bondsmen don't post the capital for every bond. They are, in turn, bonded with the local jurisdiction they serve. They put up a single large sum of money, giving them the ability to move in and out of individual bonds with low friction. They make 100% of their money on the fees they charge to the accused. The industry gets a bad rap, but there's an upside as well. Those in need of bond are infrequently the ones who post their own bond, even when the amount is only a fraction paid to the bail bondsman. It is more often family or friends who post the bond. A bail bondsman is prepared to come and find you if you skip town. They have the resources and the reputation to incentivize the accused to show up as agreed, which ends up saving families from huge losses due to posting bond for delinquent relatives.

Is bail consistently repaid after the trial?

by ollysb 13y ago

Is bail consistently repaid after the trial?

Yes, and this is the basis for a sizable industry in the United States. The accused must post a bond to ensure that they will appear in court when scheduled. A bond is just an agreement backed by money. Fail to fulfill your end of the agreement, and you lose the money. Often, the accused do not have the financial means to satisfy their bond requirements. In this case, bail bondsmen put up the cash to satisfy the bond in exchange for a fee paid from the accused. This fee is non-refundable, and is usually some percentage of the actual bond amount. If the accused do not appear in court on their scheduled date, it is up to the bail bondsman to track them down and deliver them to the custody of law enforcement. The system is on the sketchy side, but it serves a purpose. Bail bondsmen have tremendous incentive to make sure their clients appear in court. In this way, they act as a kind of outsourced private detective in charge of keeping track of people who are out on bond. Their business model works because bond amounts are paid back when the accused appears in court. In reality, bondsmen don't post the capital for every bond. They are, in turn, bonded with the local jurisdiction they serve. They put up a single large sum of money, giving them the ability to move in and out of individual bonds with low friction. They make 100% of their money on the fees they charge to the accused. The industry gets a bad rap, but there's an upside as well. Those in need of bond are infrequently the ones who post their own bond, even when the amount is only a fraction paid to the bail bondsman. It is more often family or friends who post the bond. A bail bondsman is prepared to come and find you if you skip town. They have the resources and the reputation to incentivize the accused to show up as agreed, which ends up saving families from huge losses due to posting bond for delinquent relatives.