How Bail Amounts Are Determined

Bail bonds are offered to most anyone who is charged with a crime. It is a part of the legal process that has been around for a long time. In fact, the bond hearing is the first legal proceeding that will occur after a person has been arrested and informed of the charges pressed against them. A judge will be the one to set the bail amount. If that amount is paid by the individual who has been charged with the crime then they can go home to await their trail. This is the preferred alternative to many who would rather not have to wait around in jail for that trial date.

How is one person’s bond set so differently from another? A lot of that has to do with the particular judge that the individual ends up facing. They will determine how to get the proper bond set. The first consideration to be made is the seriousness of the crime that has committed and what circumstances were surrounding the crime. The more serious the charge, the higher the bond amount is going to be. In some cases a charge is so serious that bond can be denied entirely. So there are a few different factors that go into how bail amounts are determined. 

Your past behavior and how you have interacted with the legal system in the past will also be a factor in what the bail amount is. Basically, the system would like to help out those who are facing their first offense, particularly if it is not all that serious. Those who are repeat offenders or who have been through the system repeatedly will not get such mercy bestowed upon them.

At the end of the day, a judge is given a great amount of freedom to choose how they will set up the bail amount for the defendants who appear before them. They are allowed to select from a variety of factors that they deem to be relevant to how likely the defendant is to show up for their scheduled court appearances in the first place. There can be a wide variety of bond amounts set by judges, but most of them go with previous precedents set throughout the country. If you or a loved one have been arrested and need help, contact Big Mike’s Bail Bonds at (316) 265-6453 or send us a message here and we will be happy to help you.