If you have a loved one in jail, then you are going to want to be sure that he or she is released as soon as possible in order to make sure that he or she can start preparing for his or her trial. You might not have the thousands of dollars available in order to get your loved on out of jail. Instead of letting your loved on stay in jail, you can go to a bail bondsman and have him or her give the government the money that is required to release your loved on until his or her trial. Here are some tips for reducing the fees that might be associated with this process.
1. Try to Get an Attorney Before You Contact a Bail Bondsman
If you were planning on getting your loved one a criminal defense lawyer or some other type of legal assistance, you can ask that legal professional to refer you to a bail bondsman. This is helpful because many bail bond facilities will offer you a discount if you are referred by a legal professional. If you want to reduce the fees that you have to pay to the bail bondsman, contact a lawyer ahead of time. You have the potential to save thousands of dollars and will be able to make the legal process much less stressful.
2. Wait Until After the First Court Hearing
Another option is to not bail your loved one out of jail until the first court hearing. If you do this, you increase the chances of your loved one's bail being lowered, which will then in turn lower the fees that you have to pay the bail bondsman. If you have hired a lawyer, chances are good that during this first hearing, he or she will be able to make the case that your loved one is not dangerous and is unlikely to run away because he or she has a strong case and therefore does not need to have such a high bail amount set, or any bail amount at all.
3. Check When the Charges Were Filed
In some states, if your loved one was arrested but the criminal charges were not filed until after he or she has been in jail for two days, or 48 hours, he or she will not have to pay bail at all and will be allowed out. This is because not filing criminal charges immediately shows that the police do not think that your loved one is a particular threat and don't see his or her case as a priority.
For more information, talk to a company that specializes in bail bonds {like Chesterfield Bonding}.
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