Many people who are thrust into the criminal justice system for the first time are often confused and unaware of their rights. Unfortunately, most police departments don’t inform people of information that could potentially help them out. One fact that many people do not know is that it isn’t mandatory to see a judge to receive bail after being arrested.
Bail Hotline in Orange County can usually have a person out of jail within a few hours of their arrest by utilizing the county’s bail bond schedule. There are numerous schedules throughout the state of California, but if someone is arrested in Orange County, they will have to follow Orange County’s rules.
Bail Schedules
Bail schedules are important in saving the county money and giving people a chance to prepare their defense. Orange County’s bail schedule has an almost exhaustive list of crimes that might be committed within the county. Each of these crimes has a set bail amount that a person can choose to post before ever having to stand before a judge. This saves the county money on housing an inmate for a few days – but more importantly, it allows the accused to work on his or her defense outside of jail walls.
Once a person is booked they can make a call to a bail bond agent, who will know the exact preset bail amount necessary for their release. This is also a good idea because once a person stands before a judge, the judge has the option of raising the preset bail amount after considering aggravated circumstances.
Crimes and Contingencies
Though Orange County’s schedule does have many types of crimes listed, the Orange County Superior Court realized when they passed the schedule that it would be nearly impossible to cover all contingencies. To deal with this issue, the Court included a list of bail amounts for crimes not mentioned within the bail schedule; these amounts are contingent on the maximum incarceration term that a person faces.
Someone who faces ten years in prison, for instance, will have a $55,000 bail amount. A person facing life in prison will have a bail amount of one million dollars. Prior strikes in the county also add another $100,000 to a person’s bail, so these amounts can get quite high.
A person accused of murder faces a one million dollar bail amount. The schedule, however, states that if special circumstances exist in the murder, then a person can be held without bail. This means that if presumption is great that a person committed the crime, they can be held until trial. One crime that may not have been seen on many bail schedules before 2001 is using a weapon of mass destruction. If death is caused through the weapon’s use, then a person faces at least a one million dollar bail amount.
Being arrested can turn into a nightmare for anyone. Imprisonment, fines and court costs are all penalties that a person accused of a crime can face. Luckily, the Orange County bail schedule allows most people to get out on bail before ever having to see a judge – allowing the accused to gather information and evidence to use for their defense. It also gives them a better chance of reaching a positive outcome with their lawyer. Contacting your bail agent means the defendant may be released from jail within a few hours so that they have a better shot at a fair trial.
Click here to download Orange County’s 2012 Bail Schedule in pdf.
