101 Bail Bonds – The Night Text

There are many stories to be told about the bail bond business, at least 101 by my count. This is one of those stories. So, let’s set the stage.

On the West Coast it was close to 10 p.m. on Saturday night, while on the East Coast it was closer to 1 a.m. Sunday morning. I got a text message from an old friend, which said:

“I need your advice now, please reply.”

I replied: “Take two aspirin and sleep well.”

I knew there was tension, when the next text from my East Coast friend was, “Not funny!”

“Well, what’s the problem?”

He seemed very serious to me when he texted me, “Can I call you?”

“Of course you can,” was my next text, but I was afraid of being told about a death or serious accident.

The news was a family affair. My friend’s son had been arrested for drawing a knife in an argument with his son’s landlord. I have to assume the discussion must have gotten a bit heated if a gun was drawn.

As you may have guessed, the local police showed up after receiving a call from a neighbor and my friend’s son was handcuffed and detained. The charge was aggravated assault with intent to cause bodily harm. Fortunately, the knife was not used, it just shone.

On the negative side, the young man has a criminal record and served time in the “big house” for his previous illicit activities. Now, it is a new chapter and the law will continue its course.

The reason for the text message was to ask me, after receiving a call from her son asking for bail, if I should post bail and what the real risk is.

On the plus side, bail in that part of the country is very low for such a serious crime. The father, my friend, asked me if he could explain the scenarios to him.

I gave him my opinion based on having been a licensed bail bondsman. You can put the cash up or use a credit card and post bail, however, if “junior” misses a court date by sleeping late as a result of partying the night before, they will lose their money and will probably be issued a court order. for her son’s arrest and you’re back where you started, with higher bail or no bail. The bail bond company wants your signature on a role as Indemnifier, so the risk is on your shoulders. “Do you trust your son enough to do that?” was my question.

There was a silence on the phone and then the reply, “What are the other options?”

Further investigation led to the discovery that the son had called a bail bond company and provided the bondsman with his father’s name and phone number. I explained that the bail bond company would require only ten percent of the bail amount, but that there was a downside to this less expensive approach.

“What’s that?” he murmured.

You’re going to be signing a lot of paperwork that essentially boils down to your agreement that you’ll assume full liability for the bail amount and other associated costs, including “junior” pursuit and capture if your child decides to run away and disappear. . I did not like that possibility friend. She was also uncomfortable with the disclosure of his personal finances, his social security information and the fine print of the bail agreement.

My friend from the east coast told me that he loved his son, but his son, over the years of raising him and seeing him get into trouble with the law in the past, left him feeling unsettled.

Another option is to do nothing. Let your son sit in jail and watch her actions and wait for the arraignment. There is a possibility that he will be released at his own risk, due to the fact that he served time for his past “hiccups” in life and was not on parole and was employed.

Think about it was my conclusion. Put all the money in and if it all works out and it works out, you’ll get your money back a few weeks after the case closes, or put in ten percent, which is a premium you won’t get back, and take all the risk on either the two scenarios. Or let him sit and do nothing.

“Thank you for your time. I’m sorry it’s so late on a Saturday night. After talking with you, I’ve decided to keep my money in my pocket and let my son, whom I love very much, face the consequences of his actions for his sake.” bill”.

As you can see, love of family doesn’t always win out in a tough situation, but common sense and strict parenting have definitely played a part.