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Why Bailing a Loved One Out of Jail Is Not Always a Good Idea

Your loved one has been arrested and sent to jail and you receive a late night phone call for help posting bail.  Obviously you should rush to the nearest bail bondsman and post bond so your loved one can get out of jail immediately, right? Maybe not.

Is this a drug possession charge?  If your loved one is addicted to drugs, do not underestimate the power of their addiction. Spending time in jail getting clean can actually be helpful. Or sometimes a cooling-off period is advisable, especially if your loved one may rush back out and try to retaliate against the person who had them arrested.  There can also be an issue of safety for your loved one – there might be someone else who would like to retaliate against them. If so, jail can be the safest place to be.  A short period in jail can also be an effective wake up call for a loved one who may be dabbling in petty crime – once they get a good look at jail, they may decide they never want to come back.

Posting bond can also be expensive. Unless you can afford to pay the entire amount yourself, you will need to pay the bail bondsman 10% of the bond amount. Does your loved one have the ability to pay you back? If not, can you afford the 10%?  For example, bond for a typical aggravated assault charge could be set at $10,000, so you would need to pay a $1,000 fee to the bail bondsman.

If you do decide to post bond, my law firm can arrange for you to meet with a reputable bonding firm and can represent you at a bail reduction hearing. I have a client who was charged with aggravated assault and the bail was initially set at $50,000, but after the preliminary hearing, the bail was reduced to $10,000.  Depending on the facts of the case, bail could even be reduced to $5,000 for an assault charge. Call my criminal defense law office in Jackson, Mississippi at (601) 944-1980 or Lafayette, Louisiana at (337) 704-2615 for a free consultation.

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