Any person arrested in Torrance has the right under the law to secure freedom from custody on bail. If you, your friend, or your relative, have been locked up, it is time to seek the services of an experienced Torrance bail bonds agent. Bail Bonds Company has become the go-to company for bond services in Torrance and the surrounding areas. Over the years, we have built a solid reputation as reliable bail bond providers. We offer personalized, one-on-one services to anyone who reaches out to us. We invite you to contact us if you require quick assistance and answer any bond questions. We believe in giving attention and ample time to our clients. All our agents are highly qualified to assist clients during stressful and challenging times.
Torrance Bail Bonds
After an arrest in Torrance, most arrestees post bail to leave custody while their cases continue. Bail is a monetary agreement between a defendant and the court. It acts as a guarantee that the defendant will attend the trial. Often, the court will hold a hearing to set bail as soon as the defendant is booked into a jail cell.
Many jails rely on bail schedules showing the amount of bail needed for each offense. However, a judge could use discretion to modify the amount indicated on the bail schedules based on some factors surrounding the defendant’s charges. The factors that could convince the judge to increase or reduce bail include:
- The severity of the offense for which the defendant is facing charges
- Defendant’s flight risk
- Level of threat the defendant would pose to other members of the society after being set free on bail.
- The strength of the ties a defendant has to the society
- The ability of the defendant to post bail
Types Of Torrance Bail Bonds
A defendant can post bail in Torrance in several ways. They include:
Immigration Bonds
Perhaps you are wondering about what happens if you are arrested and you are a U.S non-citizen. Similar to criminal arrests, aliens who are arrested and locked up by the department of immigration could be eligible for an immigration bond to enable them to leave custody and prepare for their court trial while at home.
The immigration bail bond becomes necessary when the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrests and locks you up. You will proceed to federal court for booking after your arrest. You can only post your immigration bond with the federal government. Often, the federal government is strict when handling immigration bonds. Immigration bonds also tend to be more expensive than other types of bonds.
You can secure your release from the ICE when you post an immigration bond. Several types of immigration bonds serve different purposes in Torrance. They include:
- Order of supervision
- Voluntary departure bond
- Public charge bond
- Delivery bond
Cash Bail Or Cash Payment
A common way of securing freedom from jail is by posting cash bail. You can use a credit card, deposit actual cash, or use a banker’s check. When you opt for cash bail, you must present the full bail amount before you leave the jail cell. However, the only downside of posting cash bail is the level of financial scrutiny it undergoes. The court must establish the source of the money you used to post bail to ascertain if you obtained it legally or illegally. The process of financial investigation could delay your bail posting process. This would mean you have to stay longer in custody.
Bail Bonds
If you do not have enough money or property to post bail, posting a bail bond is a common option to secure your release from jail. The Torrance bail bonds process involves working with a bail bond company to provide bail money. In return, you pay a service fee of 10% of the total bail amount.
Use Of Property Or Property Bond
You can use your property to secure your freedom from jail if you do not have enough money to pay cash bail. The judge specifies the property's value that qualifies the property to be used as bail. The court puts a lien on your property when you post a property bond. The lien will be lifted once you honor all the court-set hearings. In Torrance, the court requires you to prove ownership of the property before you can put it up as a bond. You can prove this by tabling all ownership documents. Additionally, people whose names appear on the property are supposed to appear during the property bond hearing.
Common Mistakes To Avoid When Posting Bail In Torrance
Most people in Torrance seek the quickest way to leave jail after being arrested and locked up. They often do so by posting bail. However, most arrestees often make mistakes that jeopardize their efforts to gain freedom from jail. Some of the errors they make include the following:
Seeking The Services Of Incompetent Bondsmen
Like in other industries, many frauds happen in the bail bond industry. If a defendant needs to post bail faster, they should make sure that he/she hires the right bondsman. A bondsman that does not provide favorable bail terms lacks expertise, so you do not need to waste your time on these companies.
Make substantial consultation to identify the appropriate bondsman to assist you in posting bail. For example, your criminal defense attorney can assist you in locating the right bondsman. Typically, you will only be successful in your process of posting bail, depending on the bondsman you choose.
Taking Too Long Before Applying For Bond
You need to seek the services of a bondsman immediately after your arrest. Reliable Torrance bondsmen often work 24/7 and can assist you or your loved one leave jail anytime or night. The mistake that most defendants make is taking too long before reaching out to a bondsman. You will gain freedom from custody quickly if you contact a bondsman on time.
Providing Incorrect Information
An arrestee and his/her cosigner should ensure that they feed the bail bond company and the court with the correct information. The court could deny an arrestee bail if he/she provides wrong information. A bail bond company cannot trust a defendant who gives false information even if they are willing to bail them out of custody.
Resisting An Arrest
You should avoid making things worse when the police arrest you. You should do the following during your arrest:
- Speak calmly, if you choose to speak at all
- Stay calm
- Cooperate physically with law enforcement officers
- Keep your hands in plain sight at all times
- Do not yell at the police
By conducting yourself appropriately with the police, you can:
- Set yourself up for a better defense down the road
- Avoid additional charges
- Allow law enforcement officers to see you as reasonable and calm
- The judge could also demand a lower bail amount
Torrance Misdemeanor Bail
If the court convicts you of an offense that does not have a uniform bail amount provided in the misdemeanor bail schedule, the minimum bail amount will be $500. If you face charges for a crime that is chargeable as a misdemeanor or a felony, commonly known as a wobbler crime, and the bail is not defined clearly in the bail schedule, then the minimum bail will be $750.
Penal Code 1275 Holds On Bail
The California Penal Code 1275 outlines that if the property or money you use to post bail is suspected to be a proceeding from criminal activity, then the bail will not be acceptable. This is referred to as a 1275 Hold. Any entity that plays a role in your arrest or prosecution process can impose the Penal Code 1275 Hold on the bond. This indicates that they know the money you used to post bail comes from unlawful activity.
The money could be the proceeds from extortion, drug dealing, theft, gang-related activities, or embezzlement. These kinds of activities could render the money that comes from them ineligible for posting bail. The judge assumes that if you use unlawful money to post bail means, you will not care even if you lose the money. Therefore, you will not have an incentive to continue attending court trials should the judge free you on bail.
Penal Code 1275 Hearing
If the court imposes Penal Code 1275 Hold on your bail, it will set a hearing to ascertain if the money you used to post bail is, in fact, from unlawful sources. To prove that the money comes from a legit source, you will be required to present a credit card and bank statements, tax returns, car payment information, bill payment statements, and evidence of income during the PC 1275 hearing.
When you appear for your PC 1275 Hearing, you should seek the services of an attorney and a reliable Torrance bail bondsman. You can also come with a witness to testify to your income source and clarify your financial situation. If the court ascertains that the money you used to post bail is obtained from legit sources, it will lift the 1275 Hold, and you will be free to post bail.
Torrance Bail Bond Rates
Generally, California State requires that all bondsmen charge 10% of the total bail amount to post bail for an arrestee. For example, if the bail is $20,000, the bail bond company should charge $2,000 to post bail. The $2,000 could seem like a lot of money, but it is far better than posting the whole amount. The law requires that for immigration and federal bonds, the rates should range between 15 to 20%. The law sets these rates and calls on all the bondsmen to charge similar amounts. Some companies give discounts and charge lower payments, like 8% of the bail figure. However, no company should charge more than 10% of the bail amount.
If you retain a private attorney and pay the entire premium within 72 hours, California law allows for a discounted rate on bail. The discounts are permissible for AARP members, government union workers, and military members. The surety company writing the bonds for the bail bond company is responsible for determining these discounts.
Bail Exoneration
Bail exoneration means the defendant's financial obligation to the court is complete. This is a significant relief to the defendant because he/she no longer has to worry about bail being forfeited.
After an arrestee has gained freedom from custody on bail and while their charges are pending, he/she must attend all the necessary court hearings. The court can revoke the bail if the arrestee fails to attend the court trial. The court will not refund money the arrestee paid or the money owed to a bondsman as a balance of the bail amount. The arrestee could also be taken back into custody for the case duration.
Exoneration of bail could also happen under the following circumstances:
- The court acquits the defendant after trial — Penal Code 1195
- The defendant is mentally incompetent and cannot stand trial
- The criminal case is dismissed after a motion is granted to set aside the indictment or information — Penal Code 995 and 997
- The case is dismissed following a successful motion to suppress evidence — Penal Code 1538.5(k) and 1538.5(i)
- A court order issued a directive to send the defendant into a drug diversion program — Penal Code 1000.2
- The case is dismissed in the interests of justice —Penal Code 1384, 1385, and 1188
- A defendant personally surrenders to the court — Penal Code 1300 and 1302
- The court sustains a demurrer — Penal Code 1008
- The surety surrenders the defendant — Penal Code 1300
The Meaning of ‘’No Longer Responsible For Bail’’
The court will exonerate the bail after the defendant attends all the necessary court hearings. The court could also close the charges against the defendant. At this point, the defendant does not have the threat of bail forfeiture. Also, the defendant does not bear the risk of owing the bondsman the remaining 90% of the bail amount.
Posting bail allows an arrestee to be free from custody while awaiting court trial. The caveat is that he/she will face several conditions. The defendant must comply with the conditions between the time the case concludes and the time of being set free from jail. One of the conditions of bail is honoring all the court-set hearings. A defendant could be scheduled for several court hearings in a criminal case. The hearings often include arraignment, pre-trial hearings, and the trial.
Bail guarantees that the legal protections are upheld by incentivizing the arrestee to honor the court-set hearings. After an arrestee has posted the bail, the court holds onto it during the pendency of the charges. The court will keep the money if the arrestee fails to attend the trial. The money could be thousands of dollars the defendant will not get back. The defendant would be responsible for paying the whole amount to the bond company if he/she went through an agency to post bail.
Financial Responsibilities To The Bondsman Still Owed
There is a difference between going via a bail bond company to post bail and paying bail out of pocket. When a defendant posts bail using their own money, the court refunds the money posted without any fees after the case. However, with the bondsman, the defendant pays a portion of the bail amount for the agency's services. The premium is not refunded even when bail is exonerated. The bondsman retains the premium as income earned to secure the defendant's freedom from jail.
When the defendant's case ends and bail is exonerated, the defendant could still have financial responsibilities to the bondsman. For example, the defendant could have set up a payment plan to service the premium, or there could be applicable fees that must be paid.
Qualities Of A Good Bail Bondsman
With so many Torrance bail bond companies, it can be challenging for defendants to choose the right bondsman to assist them in securing release from jail. However, many bail companies in Torrance are legit and committed to helping defendants secure release from custody. Some of the good characteristics that a bail company should portray are:
Affordable Bail Rates
A defendant should inquire about the rates a bail bond company charges before agreeing. Some bail companies use tricky means of advertisement to attract new clients. However, the law in California requires that a bail company charges not more than 10% of the total bail amount.
24-hour Operation
Police officers have no specific time for arresting a person. They arrest people day and night, seven days a week. An arrestee should seek the services of a bail company that is accessible 24/7. It is stressful to spend more time behind bars awaiting bail documentation the following day.
Court Information
Torrance Courthouse
Jail Information
Torrance City Jail
Torrance, CA 90503, United States
Find a Competent Torrance Bail Bond Agent Near Me
Your arrest or the arrest of your loved one is a traumatizing event. You need a reliable Torrance bail bonds provider by your side. For decades, the Bail Bonds Company has provided exceptional bail bond services in Torrance and the surrounding areas. We are good at what we do, as indicated by the positive reviews from our clients. Contact us today for bail bond services that you can rely on. Call us at 323-579-1415 to speak to one of our agents.
