A bail bond is a financial agreement that permits a defendant to secure his/her release from custody pending trial. A defendant (or his or her relative) pays a fee to a licensed bail bondsman for the purpose of getting out of jail. Bail bondsmen are crucial to the Oklahoma criminal justice system. Each time that they bond someone out, they put their own money and license at stake. Not all defendants are eligible for a bail bond – and not every bail bondsman will accept all bail bonds. As a licensed bail bondsman in Norman, OK, Tamara has learned a lot in her years of bonding and developed strict criteria. She lists the 6 kinds of criminals that she won’t bond out of jail in this blog. It also gives reasons as to why the decisions were made.
What is a Bail Bond in Oklahoma?
A bail bond is a written agreement that the defendant will appear in court at all times set. If the defendant doesn’t show, then the total bail amount is paid by the bail bondsman to the court.
A licensed Oklahoma bail bondsman will require a premium (usually 10 percent of the entire bail), which is a non-refundable fee. The defendant or his/her family pays the bondsman $1000 if the judge sets $10,000 cash bail. Then the bondman will deposit $10,000 with the court.
From that time, the bondsman is completely responsible for the defendant’s finances. If the defendant does not appear in court, then the bondsman is out the full bail amount. When the bondsman does this, he or she is legally entitled to search for and bring the defendant into custody.
It is for this reason that expert bail bondsmen in Norman, OK, thoroughly assess each case. Taking on the wrong client can raise the expense of thousands of dollars. Recovery time and cost are further increased with recovery work with a bounty hunter or skip tracing investigator.
OKC Private Investigators who work with bail bondsmen regularly help to locate defendants who fail to appear in court. To obtain the recovery of a fugitive bond, skip tracing, surveillance, and background checks are all factors.
A bail bondsman won’t bond out every defendant because of reasons such as:
In Oklahoma City, a bail bondsman may refuse to serve any defendant for any reason, based on business. Bail Bonding is not a right or entitlement of the public; it is a business.
All of the denials are related to risk. The bondsman will assess whether or not the defendant will appear in court. They also evaluate their ability to recover the defendant to assist in the event of an adverse situation.
There are a few factors that experienced bondsmen utilize to decide the danger. These include the defendant’s criminal record, the crime the defendant is accused of, and community connections. Other considerations include the employment status, past no-shows, and co-signers available.
Norman, OK bail bondsmen such as Tamara make these risk assessments in each and every case. Years of experience will leave a bondsman to know what sort of cases can be handled and which ones can’t. The following 6 types are always ones which she turns down.
Type 1: People who have been convicted for failure to appear.
One of the riskiest bond customers is a defendant with a history of not appearing in court. The best indication of future conduct is past conduct in determining whether a person should be granted a bail bond.
Failure to appear (also referred to as FTA) is when the defendant has failed to show up at a court date. As soon as that occurs, Oklahoma happens to be a state that issues a bench warrant. If that does occur, Oklahoma courts will issue a bench warrant right away. If the bondsman makes the decision, he or she is liable for the entire amount of the bail.
Norman, OK bail bondsmen will look at court records prior to agreeing to post bail on anybody. Tacit knowledge among professional bondsmen is that multiple FTAs on one defendant’s record are indications of a pattern.
One FTA on a recent case is an issue to be concerned with. Once an individual defendant has failed to show up in court, he or she has proven willing to risk the money and license of others. Tamara will not accept such cases, as it puts her clients and business at risk.
Bondsmen often hire an Oklahoma state private investigator to help locate individuals who have jumped bail in Edmond, Oklahoma, and Oklahoma City. All of that recovery work is costly, stressful, and time-consuming – and it all begins with one poor bonding decision.
Type 2: Those convicted of serious felonies who were violent offenders
Defendants charged with first-degree murder, armed robbery, aggravated assault, or rape represent just about the worst types of defendants that any bail bondsman could hope to have. Courts typically set bail very high — if they set it at all — for these types of charges.
For a serious violent felony, the dollar amount of bail may be as high as $250,000 or more. A bondsman is extremely vulnerable if he gets $100,000 to post that sum. The prospect of missing just one court date might result in an enormous loss.
In addition, violent offenders are more unpredictable than those who are not violent. When a Norman, OK bail bondsman bonds out a violent offender, he exposes himself to financial risk as well as risk to his own safety.
Before making a decision, Tamara considers the defendant’s violent history, as well as the evidence in the case, and the specific charges. Tamara drops almost all incidents that fall under murder, weapons charges, and offenses against children.
Oklahoma law also restricts the means a bondsman can use to collect a violent fugitive defendant. That restriction makes it even more difficult to control the risk when a violent defendant goes missing.
Type 3: Defendant(s) with No Community Ties in OKLAHOMA
An important part of bail bond risk assessment is community ties. When someone has close ties to the community, he is more likely to be in court. One who does not have any relationship in the area is a much greater risk.
Community ties refer to a stable job and having a permanent dwelling in the community. Long-term area residents and family members also count toward community ties. If the defendant has been a resident of Norman, OK, for 10 years and has a regular job, then the risk is manageable. The stability is increased with a family at home.
It’s totally different if a defendant moved to Oklahoma City a couple of months ago and doesn’t have a family here. So the risk is even more difficult to handle if one is employed at a cash-based job without any verifiable employers. The chances are that that defendant will have got very little to lose, for he can vanish.
Norman, OK bail bondsman, such as Tamara, takes the entire situation into consideration. She asks the defendant where he or she works, where they live, and who plans to post bail. Weak responses in each of the three categories will generally lead to a decline of bond.
Out-of-state defendants pose the greatest threat in regard to community ties. Norman, Oklahoma, has little reason to expect someone charged with a crime to come back if he or she resides in another state.
Type 4 – Defendants charged with drug trafficking offenses.
In Oklahoma, there are mandatory minimum sentences for drug trafficking offenses. When a defendant faces a straight term of imprisonment, he or she has a strong reason to flee and avoid court.
The state of Oklahoma has harsh penalties concerning drug trafficking offenses within Title 63 of the Oklahoma statutes. Sentences for possession or trafficking in methamphetamine, heroin, fentanyl, or cocaine can be anything from 7 years up to life. Flight is a deliberate decision by many of those defendants based on those consequences.
When a Norman, OK bail bondsman bonds out a drug trafficking defendant, he takes on a large amount of risk that said defendant could flee. Often, these defendants have access to cash, outside contacts, and resources which make disappearing easier.
Gang affiliation, criminal networks, and co-defendants are also a feature of drug trafficking cases. An organized drug syndicate can assist a defendant in eluding law enforcement as well as the bondsman.
Tamara does a case-by-case assessment of drug trafficking cases. Sometimes mitigating factors can alter the decision. Having good family relationships, no criminal record, and having a good co-signer with assets helps. However, trafficking charges almost always result in a drop most of the time.
Type 5: Defendant(s) for whom a Warrant is Currently Active in Other Jurisdictions.
Having an active arrest warrant in another city or state is a major liability for a defendant. The case acceptance by any bondman is a risky affair. Active warrants allow law enforcement to be able to stop the defendant anywhere at any time.
During the Oklahoma bond period, another jurisdiction can remand the defendant to their custody. They don’t show up for their Oklahoma hearing. The bondsman is responsible for the full amount of bail despite it being the defendant’s intention to flee.
A Norman, OK bail bondsman thoroughly checks each potential client’s warrant. The search includes Oklahoma statewide records, county records, and national warrant databases.
An out-of-state warrant will likely cause an automatic loss. A bondman has no way of controlling the actions of another jurisdiction in regard to the defendant. With that loss of control, the risk becomes impossible to control.
Oklahoma City private investigators are able to help bondsmen conduct multi-jurisdictional warrant searches. Norman, Oklahoma private detective will be able to perform a comprehensive background check, which may be able to detect warrants that a standard court document search won’t.
When co-signers are unable to cover the risk, it indicates defendant type 6.
All Oklahoma bail bonds include a co-signer, also known as an “indemnitor.” The co-signer will be responsible for paying if the defendant doesn’t show up to court.
Your co-signer’s background must be fairly decent and needs to have good money and property. If a co-signer has no assets, is on the unemployment line, and has a lot of debt, he or she provides the bondsman with virtually no security.
Tamara has conducted thorough investigations of all the financial circumstances of each co-signer as well as the defendant’s criminal background. Having a weak co-signer on a high bail case is a no-go. The bondsman must have a real-skin wallet with a real body in it behind him pushing the defendant to appear. When a co-signer is weak, he or she gives no real pressure.
Those who have co-signers with previous criminal records, bankruptcies, or other charges pending also cause red flags to go up. A co-signer must be a stabilizer in the defendant’s life. Adding an additional risk to the equation with a co-signer makes the bond unpalatable.
In less severe cases, a Norman OK bail bondsman will be able to assist with an imperfect co-signer. However, if the charges are severe and the bail high, the co-signer’s finances will determine that.
What happens if a Bonded Defendant doesn’t show up?
Even professional bail bondsmen will sometimes give bail bond for a defendant only to find out that he has skipped court. Once that occurs, the bondsman has a brief period of time to get the situation right.
Bondsmen are granted a grace period (usually 180 days) by Oklahoma courts to attempt to return a fugitive defendant to custody. If the bondsman does return the defendant within the time limit, the court can release the bond and send the forfeiture money back.
Bondsmen are individuals in Oklahoma City who collaborate with bounty hunters and private investigators to find and retrieve the absconding defendant. The main method used to locate defendants who have gone underground is skip tracing.
A private investigator in Edmond, OK, can carry out surveillance and research of address history searching in order to find missing defendants. Another important tool in the skip tracing arsenal used by the Norman skip trace is social media analysis. It could take thousands of dollars to recover from that. It highlights the importance of being careful at the start when screening.
Norman OK process servers will work with the bondsman and deliver any documents pertaining to bond forfeiture to the court. Here in Edmond, Oklahoma, process server teams are responsible for serving at the same location in the metro.
What to Do When a Bail Bond Company Refuses to Take Your Case?
A declined bond does not mark the end of the road. It’s a warning sign that you should re-evaluate the situation.
First and foremost, ask the bond man why they rejected. Knowing the exact cause enables the family to come to grips with it. Sometimes, securing another co-signer in a better financial position can repair a weak co-signer situation.
Secondly, you can talk with a lawyer and ask for a hearing to reduce your bail. Oklahoma courts can lower the bail if the amount is excessive based on the crimes or a defendant’s ability to pay. The lower the bail amount, the easier it is to bond, and it reduces the risk exposure of the bondsman.
Third, collect documentation in support of community connections. Pay stubs, lease agreements, and proof of family relationships are all useful to help a bondsman better evaluate the risk. When a defendant can show documented stable employment, bonding becomes easier. The application is even more credible with a permanent, Norman, OK, address.
Fourth: Be honest with the bondsman. Seeking to conceal previous FTAs, outstanding warrants, or a criminal record almost always ends up working against you. Bondsmen do a complete record check. Uncovering a hidden detail after the fact makes trust hard to maintain and could lead a bondsman to rescind an existing bond.
Norman, Oklahoma bail bondsmen like Tamara will always clearly inform you of their reasoning. With proper understanding, the families have better chances of resolving the issue. That clarity makes it much more possible to pursue release through the proper channels.
Frequently Asked Questions About Bail Bonds in Norman, OK
What if the bail bondsman doesn’t want to post bail for someone?
Yes. An Oklahoma bail bondsman may completely turn down any defendant. Bail bonding is a private industry and bail bondsmen don’t have to accept all cases.
If charges are dropped, does a bail bondsman refund the premium?
Norman, OK bail bondsmen charge a non-refundable 10% fee for any bail bond. That’s regardless of the outcome of the case; that fee pays for the bondsman’s risk and service.
How much time does it take to get someone out of jail with a bail bond?
The majority of Oklahoma City bondsmen are capable of handling a bond in 2 to four hours. Norman, Oklahoma bondsmen adhere to the same course of action after they receive the paperwork and payment. The jail’s paperwork processing speed also determines how long the release takes.
Call a Trusted Norman, OK Bail Bondsman today.
Understanding why a bail bondsman refuses a case helps families make smarter choices when authorities arrest their loved ones. A bondsman’s “no” has six obvious reasons, of which violent charges, weak community ties, and flight risk history are three. Every denial will save the bondsman’s license, his or her money, and the sanctity of the bail system in Oklahoma.
At Bail Bonds by Tamara, our clients in Norman, OK, Oklahoma City, OKC, and Edmond can find us. She is quick, professional, and honest in handling all bail bond cases. If authorities arrested your family member and you urgently need answers — call now.
Phone: (405) 200-5110 Website: bailbondsbytamara.com
