What is the Difference Between Bail and Bond in the Adams County Jail?
Bail and Bond are two ways of saying the same thing in Adams County, Brighton and Northglenn. The terms bail / bond refer to the process of posting money or property with a court to ensure the appearance of the accused at future court appearances. The idea is that if a person fails to appear, the court will keep the bail / bond which was posted.
How Does the Douglas County Court / Judge Decide on the Bail / Bond Amount?
In most cases, the process starts with an arrest warrant, where the detective on a case simply asks the Douglas County Judge for an amount. No one but the Parker Police detective and the judge are present. When a person is arrested quickly at the scene of a crime or right after, there is no time to ask a judge. So, the jail will turn to a list of all the crimes and the “scheduled bond” amount, or “bond schedule”. These amounts are determined by judges to represent the average bond for each case. Read more on how a bond amout is decided.
What is a Bail / Bond Reduction Hearing in Denver County?
Once a person receives a bail / bond amount, they can ask a Denver County judge to lower it. This occurs at a bail / bond reduction hearing, where the lawyer for the government (DA) and the criminal defense lawyer argue the amount of bond. Some of the factors influencing the bail bond amount include:
- The length of time the person has been living in Colorado.
- The length of time the person has been employed in Colorado.
- Whether the person has family in Colorado.
- Whether the person owns real estate in Colorado.
- The person’s prior failures to appear in court.
- Whether the person has ever broken / violated their bond conditions previously.
- The person’s prior criminal history.
- The severity of the offense: crimes of violence or sex crimes will have a higher bond.
- The strength of the government’s case.
- The position of the alleged victim on the bond as determined by the DA in the VRA – Victim’s Rights Act contact call.
- Any other factor tending to show the defendant’s ties to the community and likelihood of coming to court as ordered.
What is a PR Bond or Personal Recognizance Bond in Arapahoe County?
A Personal Recognizance Bond is one where the inmate promises to pay the court money if they don’t show up for their court appearances. These are rarely granted, and require the consent of the district attorney in some circumstances. While these are very attractive to defendants, courts in Arapahoe County and Aurora consider them a very weak form of security, since no actual money is collected and held by the jail or court.
It is always best to have your Denver area criminal defense attorney talk with the court and the DA concerning your bail bond amount. Never talk to the court or pretrial services about your case. Instead, call the best bail-bond lawyers at 303-731-0719. Together, we can protect your future.
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