The Utah Constitution prohibits courts from imposing excessive bail in a criminal case. Determining what is “excessive” is not always an easy process.
The original bail amount imposed in many cases will be set based only on input from the prosecutor. The bail amount may be higher than what a defendant can post as a cash bail.
Before paying unnecessary fees to a bail bond company (bondsman), contact us to speak with an experienced Utah criminal defense attorney. There may be strategies and options for obtaining a bail reduction or other release in your case. In many cases, hiring an attorney can actually save you hundreds or thousands of dollars.
Bail Reductions and Bond Hearings
When a bail amount is set in a Utah criminal case, you have a number of options. If you can post the full amount of the bail in cash, and if you appear at all required court appearances, then the cash bail amount will be refunded to you once the case is resolved. If you cannot post the full cash bail, one option is to pay the fees required by a Utah bail bond company. Under Utah law, bail bond companies are required to charge a minimum of 10% of the cash bail amount. You will also be required to pay additional fees allowed by law, and you may be required to put up collateral to protect the bond company. The fees paid to a bond company are not refundable.
Consider the following hypothetical. If the bail amount set by the court is $50,000 then you would be required to pay more than $5,000 (non-refundable) to a bond company to be released on bond. If your criminal attorney were able to reduce the bail to $10,000, you could save yourself $4,000 in fees payable to a bond company. In some cases, your attorney may even be able to get the bail amount reduced to a point that you could post the entire bail amount in cash. As noted above, bail amounts posted in cash are refundable upon resolution of the case.
Finding a Criminal Defense Attorney
If you have an outstanding warrant, or if a friend or loved one has been arrested on criminal charges in Utah, contact an experienced criminal attorney before you speak with a bail bond company.
