Bail / Bond Procedures in Colorado Criminal Cases
Bail and Bonds in Colorado, through either cash, property or surety ( when posted by a bail bondsman), are required when the court wants some security that a person will reappear before them following an arrest by police. If the case is more serious, if the defendant has prior arrests, or if the defendant does not have close ties to Colorado, a bail-bond will usually be required.
People charged with crimes are sometimes given a summons instead of being arrested. A Colorado summons is similar to a traffic ticket and simply lists the charges and a date to appear in the Colorado court (the return date). A summons is often given instead of a bond in misdemeanor matters. Lately, it has become rarer for the issuance of a summons in a Colorado felony criminal case. A Colorado law enforcement officer has much discretion in deciding whether to issue a summons or make an arrest.
Bail Bond Amounts
The purpose of a bail bond is supposed to be to ensure the defendant's appearance in court. Too often, however, it is used by the police to hold a defendant in custody or to punish a defendant for not speaking with the police (and confessing to a crime). Colorado bail / bond amounts vary from the low thousands for class five and class six felonies, to a million or more for capital offenses. In Colorado criminal cases in the Denver metro area, we typically see sexual assault on a child bond amounts ranging from twenty thousand dollars to one hundred thousand dollars. A Denver, Colorado bail / bond, Jefferson County, Colorado bail / bond, Arapahoe County, Colorado bail / bond, Douglas County, Colorado bail / bond, and Adams County, Colorado bail / bond, for class four felonies are generally in the five thousand to ten thousand dollar range. For misdemeanor Colorado bail / bonds in Denver County, Jefferson County, Arapahoe County, Douglas County and Adams County, Colorado, bail / bond amounts typically range from five hundred to five thousand dollars. Factors influencing Colorado bail / bond amounts include the defendant's prior criminal history, prior failures to appear, the severity of the offense, the strength of evidence, and whether sex or firearms are involved.
Four Types of Bail / Bonds in Colorado
Since most people do not have thousands of dollars of liquid cash, Colorado courts permit a variety of bonds: 1) Colorado Cash Bail / Bonds, 2) Colorado Property Bail / Bonds, 3) Colorado Surety Bail / Bonds, and 4) Colorado Personal Recognizance Bail / Bonds. Colorado Cash Bail / Bonds involve actual cash dollars being posted. The entire cash Colorado bail / bond is refundable to the person posting the money following sentencing. Colorado Property bail / bonds involve the filing of a lien by the government against real property. Typically, the property owner posting the bail / bond must have 1.5 to 2 times the amount of the bail / bond, in their property's equity. Colorado Surety bonds are the most prevalent with large Colorado bail / bond amounts. With these, the defendant will contract to rent the bail / bond money from a bondsman, who bears the risk of a failure to appear. Typically in Colorado, the bondsman will require a rental premium fee of 10% for bonds larger than $10,000, and 15% for bonds less than $10,000. The bondsman keeps the premium for incurring the risk of loss of the bond. If the defendant were to fail to appear, the entire amount of the bond may be lost by the bondsman or his underlying insurance carrier. Colorado Personal recognizance bonds involve a promise to pay by the person signing with or for the defendant. No money is posted, but the bail / bond converts into a civil judgment for the court should a defendant fail to appear. Colorado Cash and Colorado surety bail / bonds are typically posted at the Colorado jail where a person is held in custody.
If you are bonding someone out with a Denver, Colorado bail / bond, a Jefferson County, Colorado bail / bond, an Arapahoe County, Colorado bail / bond, a Douglas County, Colorado bail / bond, or an Adams County, Colorado bail / bond, you need to have a qualified Colorado Criminal Lawyer on your side to promptly address the court regarding statutory factors to having the bail / bond amount reduced. You can save thousands of dollars with your attorney's early intervention. At the O'Malley Law Office, our lawyers regularly persuade courts to reduce bail / bonds by fifty percent or more. Contact a Colorado criminal attorney today at 303-731-0719 to learn more about the Colorado bail / bonding process.
