People who are facing criminal charges in Oklahoma are often concerned about how they’re going to get out of jail while their charges are pending. In order to do this, these individuals may have to post bail.
If you’re facing criminal charges, you may be curious about how the bail process works. One of the most important things to know is that bail is money that’s given to the court as an assurance that you’re going to appear in court as required throughout the duration of your case. In some cases, bail can be set in thousands or even millions of dollars that can be provided to the court in assets or cash.
What happens if you can’t pay bail?
If you can’t pay the full amount of bail, and the bail isn’t cash-only, you can use a bail bondsman to secure your release. A bail bondsman will charge a percentage of the bail amount as a fee. In exchange for that amount, they’ll write a bond to the court so you can get out of jail.
What happens if you don’t appear in court?
You can be given a fail-to-appear charge, which will result in a warrant for your arrest, if you don’t show up in court. The court can revoke your bail, so you’ll have to wait in jail for the duration of your case. If a bondsman wrote a bond for you, they’ll likely be looking for you.
If you provide bail directly to the court, you’ll be able to have it returned if you appear at all your hearings and the case concludes. The fee you pay to the bail bondsman won’t be returned because that’s the funds they receive for the service they provide.
“Making bail” is one of the most important steps in the criminal defense process. Learning more can help you get your case on the right track.