An appearance bond is a bond that you or a family member purchases from the government on your behalf. It is used to increase the chances that you will return for your court hearing should you be released from jail. The court decides how much your appearance bond is going to be. You might be surprised by how different it is from someone else's. Here are some factors that are considered when determining the amount of your appearance bond.
1. Your Likelihood of Returning
Your defense attorney and the prosecuting attorney will argue to either decrease or increase the amount of your bail bond. Your defense attorney will try to show that you are committed to coming back and that you are risking more than you would gain from potentially running away before your trial. If you are trying to prove that you have a high likelihood of returning, playing up any ties you have to the area will help you strengthen your case. These ties could be family and friends that are allowing you to crash with them or people who are going to help pay your appearance bond that would be financially ruined should you run.
Another option is for your defense attorney to make the case that the amount of jail time that you would receive should you be found guilty of the crime that you are accused of is far less than the time that would be added to your potential sentence if you ran.
2. Your Crime's Violence Level
Another factor that a judge considers when setting the level of your appearance bond is the level of violence of your crime. If your crime was nonviolent, then you are likely not going to be considered a danger to others and would therefore be safe to release on an achievable appearance bond. If your crime was violent, then you might have a high appearance bond set in order to reduce the chances that you will commit violence in the future. You can help reduce your appearance bond or at least keep it from rising by being calm and nonviolent while you are in police custody. This will deny the prosecuting attorney the ability to say that since you've been violent while in custody, you will likely be a danger to society and should keep your appearance bond extremely high.
3. Your Court Appearance History
Finally, if you have a good history of showing up for your court appearances, you will likely have a lower appearance bond than someone who has a track record of fleeing. If you don't have a history of showing up for court records, consider finding solid justifications for why you could not make your court date and having your defense attorney present them to the court.
For more information, talk to a company that specializes in appearance bonds, such as Brad's Bail Bonds.
