Overview
SB 782 (Thrasher) and HB 445 (Dorworth) put modest limits on who is eligible for government
funded pretrial release (PTR) programs. Opponents of this bill have said that these limits would
increase the county jail population. This is not true.
Pasco County Findings
Due to budget constraints, in 2007 Pasco County completely eliminated its government run PTR
program, saving taxpayers $348,000 per year. In 2008, the county’s jail population increase
was a negligible 5 bed days per year (an increase from 1,262 to 1,267)…a less than 0.4% increase.
However, when considering the population growth of the county during that same time, there was
a net decrease of 2.2% in per capita bed days. Per capita occupancy went DOWN, not up!
Sources: Florida Department of Corrections, Index to Statistics and Publication; US Census population estimates.
“Due to budget cuts, we completely cut out the pretrial release program in Pasco County.
As a result, we saved taxpayers nearly $350,000 last year and haven’t seen any
noticeable change in our jail population. I have had great success in doing away with the
pretrial release program.”
–Pasco County Sheriff Bob White
“We have had great success with the Pre-trial Program being eliminated in Pasco
County.”
–Pasco County Commissioner Michael Cox
Conclusion
The complete elimination of the taxpayer financed pretrial release program in Pasco County had
no significant impact on jail population. If any impact must be drawn, one could conclude that
eliminating the program actually reduced the per capita jail population while saving taxpayers
nearly $350,000 per year.
We found a video that talks about Pre-trial release and how ineffective it really is. Pre-trial release is nothing more than another government program that costs taxpayers money. Please watch the video and leave your comments.
If you’ve ever been involved in the bail bonds process in Hillsborough County, then you will know all about collateral. Fortunately, most people never have to deal with this sort of thing, so it’s actually quite likely that you’ve never even heard of it before. You may have heard the term “collateral” used in other areas, and in the bail bonds industry in Hillsborough County, collateral is a largely similar concept to other industries. Collateral is basically an asset (or assets) that are given to the bail bondsman or bail bond agency when initiating the bailing out of someone who’s been arrested. This collateral takes away a lot of the risk that the bail bond agency acquires when initiating the process.
The thing is, if collateral wasn’t provided, then you and the arrestee could simply try and run away, leaving the bail bondsman in Hillsborough County to pay the bill for the full bail amount. Having to do this can be financially crippling for a bail bond agency, so it’s important that they aren’t taking too many risks by dealing with a case like yours. They will ask for collateral unless they can be absolutely sure that there is no risk involved, which is unlikely. Without collateral, the whole bail bonds industry would have died many years ago, so we should be thankful that there is such a simple way of solving the issue of risk.
You may be asked to attend a nebia hearing if the arrestee was involved in a federal crime. This nebia hearing will simply ensure that you have enough collateral to full cover the cost of the bail. It is a longer process than with normal state or county bail bonds, primarily because there is a higher risk involved with federal cases.
Collateral is all about eliminating risk; if everything goes smoothly, then you won’t have any problems to deal with, and you’ll get your collateral back once the conditions of the bail are fulfilled. If you can’t be sure that the conditions of the bail will be fulfilled, then you should perhaps reconsider providing the collateral in the first place.
Communication is the biggest problem that immigration bail bonds face in Fort Pierce. It’s extremely difficult for a bail bond agency and an immigrant to communicate effectively on the same level. This may not just be because of language difficulties; often there are cultural differences and secrets that can hinder proceedings before they even get started properly. Immigrants generally don’t have any idea about the bail bonds process in this country, especially since it is quite unique around the world. Often people will have heard that bailing someone out of jail is possible, but they simply have no idea where to start. It is important that the indemnitor (the person that co-signs the bail bond) communicates well with the Fort Pierce bail bondsman that is handling the process. The process may take some time, but if both parties are patient and willing to take that extra time to understand each other, then everything can run quite smoothly.
Because of the higher risk that a bondsman incurs when taking on an immigration bail bond, there is a higher deposit to pay than the standard amount. This will be 15% of the full bail amount. The next step will be finding collateral, which is often extremely difficult, primarily because immigrants may not have any belongings or properties. If there is not sufficient collateral to cover the full amount of the bail bond, it is unlikely that the process will go any further.
The immigrant will need papers to prove their identity, and need to disclose any information they have about their current situation. How much information the bondsman asks for depends on which bondsman you use, but remember that you can always back out if you do not wish to proceed with the initial stages. The bondsman will make sure you understand the conditions of the Fort Pierce bail bond, and the conditions of the bail set out by the prison, so that all of them are fulfilled. If any of these are not fulfilled correctly, the bail could be forfeited and the full amount of the bail will be owed by the indemnitor to the bondsman.
Fugitive recovery is more commonly known as bounty hunting, and is often seen as quite a glamorous profession. Although there are a number of perks, bounty hunting is an extremely demanding job and is nothing like “Dog the bounty hunter” or any other dramatization you might have seen. Some states do not allow bounty hunting, it is 100% illegal, but you should know this before you even consider becoming a private bounty hunter. There are other laws that restrict the actions of bounty hunters in most states, and it is important that you understand all of these; it is quite useful to keep a copy of all of the laws that protect you and restrict you when you are working.
Most states have an age restriction of 21 for bounty hunters, based on the fact that it can be quite dangerous and really shouldn’t be attempted by anyone who isn’t able to defend himself. The age limit also relates to the legalities of carrying concealed weapons. Another thing you’ll need if you want to work in fugitive recovery is a good knowledge of the bail laws and the way that they work; if you don’t have a good understanding of this, you won’t be able to carry out your work in an effective manner.
Starting out as a bounty hunter is difficult, since the profession relies on a great deal of experience and connections in order to be successful. You shouldn’t expect to pick up huge amounts of work immediately; you’ll have to start small and work your way up. The most important thing is that you only take cases that you know you can handle; don’t try to be too heroic at any stage. You’ll want to build up a network of solid connections and a reputation of success before you start taking on more risky work. It is also important that you are able to defend yourself properly and have the proper equipment to carry out any task that is required of you.
Whether you’ve been arrested and are looking to post bail, or one of you friends or family members is asking you to post bail for them, understanding how to work with a Bail Bondsman will help the whole process run much more smoothly. If you’ve been arrested, you first have to wait for a bail hearing where the amount that you will have to pay will be decided. This could be an extremely high amount depending on your crime; it is then up to you to decide whether you wish to actually post bail. If you decide to do this, you will need to contact someone who you can trust (and someone who can trust you) to agree the terms of the bail with a Bail Bondsman. The bondsman will handle the finances and give your friend or family member the amount that is required for you to be released.
It is important that the person working with the Florida Bail Bondsman knows some of the details of your case, and your personal information. This will help the Bondsman as he or she goes through the process. The Bondsman will also need to know about any past criminal history and other details which may show that the arrestee is too much of a risk to be invested in. After all, the bondsman is looking to make as much money as possible, and will only be risking money if they are not absolutely sure that the arrestee will appear in court when summoned.
The bondsman will either accept or reject your case; on acceptance he will expect a 10% deposit to cover some of their risk. It is possible that the bondsman will ask for collateral as well, meaning some form of asset that he can keep until the case is over. The bondsman will essentially try to risk as little as possible. If the co-signer of the bail bond works closely with the bondsman, the whole case can be dealt with in a matter of hours.
