Frequently Asked Questions

If someone you know is in jail and you're unsure what to do first, here are the steps you should follow:

• Confirm Their Location: Contact the jail or detention center to verify that the person is being held there. Check the facility's website or call their main phone number.
• Collect Important Information: Gather their full name, date of birth, and any relevant information.
• Understand the Charges: Find out what charges are being filed - this helps understand the severity and next steps.
• Determine Bail: Ask if bail has been set and the amount required for release.
• Contact a Bail Bondsman: If the bail amount is too high to pay in cash, contact a bail bondsman. They'll require a nonrefundable fee of 10% of the bail amount to post the bond.

In Florida jails, bail is typically set at the person's first appearance before a judge. This first appearance usually occurs within 24 hours of the arrest.

During this hearing, the judge will inform the arrested person of the charges against them and determine if bail is appropriate. The judge sets the amount based on the nature and severity of the charges, the person's criminal history, flight risk, and ties to the community.

If the person cannot post bail, they will remain in jail until their next court appearance or until they can arrange for bail through a bail bondsman or other means.

This process can take as long as 2 to 8 hours depending on the jail and the amount of processing work they have.

Once a bail bond has been sent, check within the hour by calling the jail itself and providing the defendant's information for a status update.

A Florida bail bondsman will pay the full amount of the bond to the court and, in return, is paid a nonrefundable fee of 10%. The bondsman guarantees that the defendant will attend every court hearing until the case is resolved. If the defendant misses a court date, the bondsman has the authority to apprehend and return them to jail.

Once the jail accepts a bail bond from a bail agent, the person in jail will be booked out and released. This process can take anywhere from 30 minutes to 8 hours or more, depending on the county. Generally, the larger the county, the longer the wait.

In Florida, after a person is booked into jail, a bond may be set by a judge on the arresting papers (called a capias or warrant).

If a bond is set, the person is eligible to be released from jail. If someone is arrested without a bond, they will likely have to stay in jail overnight and be taken to a hearing the next day called "first appearance."

At this hearing, the judge will either:

• Release the person on their promise to appear at all subsequent court appearances (signature release or recognizance release)
• Set a cash or surety bond
• Hold the person in jail with no bond, meaning there is no opportunity for release

• Staying in jail while awaiting the disposition of the case.
• Remaining in jail and waiting for a bond reduction hearing if the bond is higher than one can or will pay. This hearing is usually set by an attorney.
• Paying the full amount of the bond in cash, with all or most of it being returned when the case is concluded.
• Calling a bondsman (also known as a "surety agent"), who will charge 10% of the bond's face amount. This is a nonrefundable fee and is rarely returned. The 10% fee is mandated by Florida state law; a bondsman may charge no less or no more.

Bail is the monetary amount set by a judge for an arrested person's release. A bond is what a bail bondsman provides to the court to secure that release. The bondsman pays the full bail amount set by the judge and charges a 10% fee, which is regulated by the State Insurance Commissioner in Florida.

Bonds can be issued for various alleged crimes, including drug offenses, immigration issues, DUIs, parole violations, disorderly conduct, failure to appear, probation violations, larceny, domestic violence, drug trafficking, and more.

If you post the full amount of the bail with the court (providing cash as collateral without using a bail bondsman), you usually receive most of that money back when the court case concludes, although the court may keep a portion for court costs.

However, if you pay a bond agent a fee and are released from jail, you rarely get any of that 10% fee back.

The money you pay to a bail agent is the fee for securing the release of the person from jail. This fee is typically 10% of the total bail amount and is mandated by state law. Once the bail agent posts the bond and the person is released from jail, that fee is considered earned by the bail agent and is nonrefundable.

Regardless of the outcome of the court case, the money belongs to the bail agent as compensation for the risk they have taken on by ensuring the person's appearance at future court dates. Even if the charges are dropped or the person is found not guilty, the fee is not returned because it is the cost of the bail agent's services.