It’s been a topic of contention lately in many states as to whether the bail system as a whole is helpful or predatory to people who are arrested who are not able to pay for their freedom. While there can obviously be arguments for both sides, a lot of the hate the bail system gets seems to be from misunderstandings. Here is a rundown on why the bail industry is actually there to help the public.
Bail at times can come from a warrant and addressing it before arrest can help from being arrested in the first place.
Although in the traditional sense, bail is used after you have been arrested and detained. From that point a judge would set bail and you would just go from there, but did you know that you can actually post bail in some cases before you are arrested? In some cases, a warrant for a person’s arrest can come attached with a predetermined bond amount and if you contact a bail bondsman in time, you can actually avoid going to jail at all.
Allow one to keep their job
If you are stuck in prison and have a job, most likely the employer would only allow so much time before they will have to terminate. Bail allows people to continue their livelihoods while preparing for their case without the fear of how they will survive once they are released.
Bail bonds allow for people to go on participating in life while awaiting their hearing.
Although there can be misunderstanding about intent and purpose, bail is something that came out of the issues of people being forced to stay in prison while awaiting a hearing to decided whether or not they were guilty. Bail was actually created to give people who have been arrested the opportunity to remain in society and live their lives instead of simply being detained while awaiting a hearing. At that point, many counter this by stating that money being involved puts that motive into contention, but really a monetary requirement creates accountability over a shakedown. This is proven by the fact that the money is returned if the defendant returns as promised to their scheduled court date. Bail in some ways is also considered a privilege because not all offenses are actually bailable. Most violent crimes are not granted bail.
Hopefully, this shows that while the bail system can sometimes get a bad reputation, in many ways it is there to help the defendant during a difficult time.
