Does Everyone Get Bail In Texas?
Well, here’s an answer for you. Yes and no. But as a general rule, everyone who has been accused of a crime is entitled to bail. Now, bail is not supposed to be used as a tool of oppression. It’s only supposed to be used to ensure that a person shows up for court.
The bail may be set at whatever level a judge or magistrate thinks is a sufficient amount to ensure that the person shows up for court. Now, there are some rare exceptions under Texas law where a person may be held without bail, but that’s usually only for a capital-level offense like capital murder, for which there’s the possibility of the death penalty.
Sometimes in those situations, a person can be held without bail. But as a general rule, everyone is entitled to bail. It’s just a question of what is the appropriate amount based on the particular offense. Here’s something interesting, and that is that bail can sometimes be effectively no bail at all because it’s set so high that the person can’t make that amount. But that’s usually for only the most serious level offenses.
Even when bail appears to be set too high or at an amount that is not reasonable for the offense that the person is charged with, an attorney can try to get the bail or the bond reduced. They file a motion for a bond reduction and have a hearing in front of a judge where the judge can be shown that that bail amount is too high, particularly for the person’s ability to make bail, because that’s a relevant factor.
How many financial resources a person has to be able to possibly make bail? Generally, everyone is entitled to bail in Texas. It’s just a question of how much that’s going to be. When a bond is set, a person can pay the full amount of the bond.
Say if the bond is $10,000, they can give $10,000 in cash to the county. The county holds that amount of money and gives it back to the person when their case is resolved, minus a small fee, maybe $35. But for people who don’t have that amount of cash, they may hire a bondsman or a bondswoman who can write the bond for them.
The bond person takes on the responsibility of making sure that that person shows up for court. They usually charge about 10% to 20% of the face amount of the bond to write the bond for the person. So that fee to the bonds person is a fee for their services. You don’t get that back when the case is over. But that way you can pay less than the face amount to be able to possibly make a bond. But yes, as a general rule, everyone is entitled to bail in Texas.
Summary
In Texas, anyone accused of a crime is usually granted bail to ensure their court appearance, with exceptions for serious offenses. Bail’s purpose is not oppression but ensuring court attendance. Judges decide appropriate bail amounts; exceptionally serious crimes may have no bail. High bail may make release impossible, mainly for severe offenses. Attorneys can request bail reduction based on the accused’s resources. Payment options include paying the full amount, possibly with a small fee refundable at the case’s end, or using a bondsman for a fee (10-20% of bail). Overall, Texas law grants bail, adjusted case-wise.
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Dallas, TX 75226
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