What is Skipping Bail?
Written on July 10, 2018. Posted In Uncategorized
When you are arrested, the court will set a bail amount that you will need to pay to secure your release until your scheduled court date. If you have the funds readily available, you can pay the bail amount yourself. However, this isn’t financially possible for most, so many people resort to using a bail bond company to cover the balance. With a bail bond, you’ll typically pay ten to fifteen percent of the bond amount, and the company will cover the remainder. But what happens if you skip your court date after you post bail? Keep reading to find out.
Skipping Bail
Posting bail means that you promise to appear in court as scheduled. If you fail to show up on your assigned court date, this is known as skipping bail. In most jurisdictions, skipping bail is a crime in and of itself, and you could face more severe penalties as a result. This could include increased fines, longer jail time or even have a bounty hunter sent to find you. These additional consequences will be added on top of the punishment for the crime for which you were originally arrested.
The court will also likely issue a bench warrant for your arrest. This means that any police officer you come in contact with will have the authority to arrest you on the spot, even if you have not committed a crime at that particular time. With a bench warrant, you won’t have the opportunity to post bail again to get released. You’ll need to remain in jail until your next court appearance to eliminate the risk of you missing your court date again in the future.
Fighting Additional Charges
Of course, there are legitimate reasons for missing your scheduled court date, like illness, injury and other circumstances outside of your control. If you are forced to miss your court date due to unforeseen complications, your attorney can advocate on your behalf to get your court date rescheduled. Your lawyer will need to prove that you did not willfully or intentionally skip bail and that you fully intend to comply with all requirements going forward.
If your attorney is successful in this matter, you can then proceed with fighting your original case as you would have before. Try to provide your lawyer with as much information as possible regarding your absence to help bolster your case to have the additional charges dismissed. The more information you can provide, the easier it will be to prove that you did not intentionally skip bail.
Posting Bail
At Free at Last Bail Bonds, we are fully committed to reuniting families. If you or a loved one needs our services, we are here for you 24 hours a day at 470-410-3409. Call us today to get the bail bond process started so that you and your loved ones can be together once more. We are always happy to help you get back home where you belong.