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For a free consultation with a criminal attorney, you may call (800) 391-8392.
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What is bail?
What is ROR?
What is remand?
What is a bail
bondsman?
Will I get my bail back?
How will I know what bail was set??
How can I pay the bail?
How can property be used as bail?
Where can I post bail?
What if the judge
sets cash only bail?
How much is the bail going to be?
What is a surety hearing?
What is bail?
Bail is security given for the release of an arrested person as a guarantee that the person will return to court in the future. Cash bail is the amount of cash that must be deposited.
What is ROR?
Receiving ROR means being released on your own recognize. You do not need to put up bail and can leave on your promise to return to court at the next scheduled date. If you do not appear in court on the appointed date, a judge may issue a bench warrant for your arrest and upon being brought to court, you may be forced to pay bail before leaving.
What is remand?
If you've been remanded, it means that bail has been denied and you will be kept in custody.
What is a bail bondsman?
A bail bondsman acts as a surety to guarantee to pay the city the amount of your bail if you do not show up in court. For large bail amounts, bondsmen can generally obtain security against such as your house, and even take out a mortgage against your house for the full sum of the bond. Many bail bondsmen write bonds for 10% of the value of the bond.
Will I get my bail back?
Yes, you can get your bail back, but you are required to make all the court apppearances. Generally, you'll receive 100% back if the case is dismissed or you are found not guilty, and you'll get 97% back if you are found guilty or take a plea.
How will I know what bail was set?
At the end of the arraignment, which is your first appearance in the court, the
judge will issue bail. If the judge orders ROR or parole, you may leave without putting up bail. If the judge orders remand, you must stay in custody because bail was denied. If the judge sets bail, he may either give one number (e.g., $3,000) or order a different sum for cash bail and a bail bond (e.g., "Bail is $5,000 bond over $1,000 cash).
How can I pay the bail?
The Department of Corrections will accept the following forms of cash bail:
- Cash;
- Cashier's checks;
- U.S. Postal Service, Bank, Western Union, Traveler's Express or Federal Express money orders up to $1,000 (multiple money-orders for $1,000 or less each will be accepted)
- Check issued by the city Finance Administrator for a bail refund.
- Checks from the U.S. Government and Veterans Administration Check up to
$1000(multiple checks for $1,000 or less each will be accepted)
- Credit cards and personal checks are not accepted.
Where can I post cash bail?
Bail may be paid in the courtroom if it is posted at the time when the defendant actually appears there before the judge. If the defendant was already taken away from court, you may post bail at:
- Bronx House of Detention
653 River Avenue,
Bronx, NY 10451
- Brooklyn House of Detention
275 Atlantic
Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11201
- Manhattan House of Detention (The Tombs)
125
White Street, New York, NY 10013
- Queens House of Detention
126-02
82nd Avenue, Queens, NY 11415
- Riker's Island
11-11 Hazen Avenue, East
Elmhurst, NY 11370
For more information on inmates, bail, visiting
hours, and travel directions call Department of Corrections at (718) 546-0700.
How can property be used as bail?
In cases where the bail is extraordinarily high, your lawyer can request that property be accept as bail, either by writ or through negotiation with the prosecutor and with consent of the judge. The property is often required to have double the value of your bail.
Can the judge set cash-only bail?
Yes, in a minority of cases, Judges order cash-only bail, meaning that you must put up the full amount of the bail with cash in order for the defendant to be allowed out of custody. Your criminal defense lawyer may take a writ of habeas corpus to "appeal" the cash-only bail. These "appeals" are usually heard within 1-3 days.
How much is the bail going to be?
No case is typical. Bail depends on many factors, such as the facts of the case, the charges faced, the people involved (judge, prosecutor, wishes of complaining witness and the skills of your criminal defense attorney). Thus, every case will be very different. We strongly suggest that you bring the maximum amount of money available to court to post bail. The judge will not ask how much you have. Bail will be set without anyone inquiring as to your ability to pay it. If you bring too much money, you will simply have to pay part of them and take the rest home. However, if you do not bring enough, you may be forced to leave your loved one in custody overnight. The following information are rough guidelines of what the bail may be, which may be different in your case:
Misdemeanors: It has been our experience that the clear majority of the people arrested for misdemeanors only and without any prior arrests are released without bail. It is also usually possible to obtain ROR even if you have a limited number of prior arrests, so long as you have appeared in court in the past every time you had a scheduled court date. In misdemeanor cases, bail is set at over $5,000 only in extraordinary matters.
Felonies: For the high level offenses (A felonies), bail may be denied and the defendant may be remanded. Sometimes, judges may issue large bails, usually in the amount of a hundred thousand dollars or more for A-class felonies. For lower-level felonies, such as D and E, it is sometimes possible to get ROR, but you should not come to court expecting the defendant to be released without bail if he was arrested for a D-class or E-class felony. In most felonies, bail will be set at anywhere between $1,000 and $30,000. Anyone with a prior history of felony offenses will very likely have bail set at $2,000 or more.
What is a
bail sufficiency hearing?
A bail sufficiency hearing or surety
hearing is something ordered by the judge in drug or fraud cases. That means that
prior to accepting bail, unless the prosecutor consents, the court will hold a hearing to verify the source of the money used as bail in order to prevent illegal profits from being used to obtain release. The defendant would then need to prove that he has a job, assets, bank accounts or other lawful means to post bail.
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