Felony Bail Bonds
When you’re arrested for a crime, you are locked up. However, because of the freedoms of America, you are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Thus, you also have the right to bail, or a way to get out of jail, until you are proven guilty. Your first court appearance must be within 48 hours of your arrest if you were arrested without a warrant. It is here you have the right to bail. In the United States, bail is determined by the crime you commit. You must pay your bail, or you stay in jail until your trial occurs, which can be months away.
ASAP Bail Bonds offers 24 hour bail bonds in Gwinnett County. Once bail is set, you can call us to get a bail bond. Bail and bail bonds are often confused. Bail is the amount of money you must pay to get out of jail while awaiting trial. A bail bond is an agreement by you to agree to appear for trial or you’ll have to pay the amount of the bail. This is entered into with a bail bondsman who charges you a fee (typically 10 percent or so) in order to guarantee payment of the bond should you skip town.
ASAP Bail Bonds is committed to helping you when you’re arrested post bail, so you can go about living your life as normal as possible until your trial occurs. We handle all of the paperwork and answer any of your questions. We stay in contact throughout your entire court process. In this blog post, we’ll go over felony bail bonds. Contact us today!
WHAT IS A FELONY?
A felony crime is a serious crime that can result in at least one year in prison or even death if convicted of a crime. Felonies can be violent and non-violent crimes with different classes, which is based on how serious they are. Misdemeanors are lesser crimes that is punishable by less than one year in prison.
The Seven Deadly Sins Law in the State of Georgia
In 1994, the State of Georgia designated seven crimes that are particularly egregious that must be punished by at least 10 years in prison. These are murder, armed robbery, kidnapping, rape, aggravated sexual battery, aggravated sodomy, and aggravated child molestation. A minimum of 25 years in jail is required for rape, aggravated sexual battery, aggravated sodomy, and aggravated child molestation. First-degree murder is a life sentence without parole or minimum 30 years with parole. Second-degree murder is a minimum of 10 years in prison.
FELONY BAIL PROCESS
If you commit a felony in the state of Georgia, only a superior court judge can set bail for you. Thus, if you happen to have your first court appearance before a magistrate judge (those who administer in magistrate courts instead of in superior courts), you will have a date set for a commitment hearing. If no hearing is set, your attorney will then motion for a bond motion to ensure bail is set so you can post bond.
Your attorney can petition the courts to lover your bail amount if you feel it is too excessive, which is guaranteed by the Eighth Amendment to the US Constitution.
IS BAIL GUARANTEED IN THE STATE OF GEORGIA FOR A FELONY?
The short answer is no. If the crime you committed is egregious and/or you have other convictions, you may not be allowed to post bail. That is because you are deemed a serious risk to the community if you were freed.
There are 13 offenses in Georgia that are non-bondable:
- Treason
- Murder
- Rape
- Aggravated sodomy
- Armed robbery
- Aircraft hijacking or carjacking (hijacking a motor vehicle)
- Aggravated child molestation
- Aggravated sexual battery
- Manufacturing, distributing, delivering, dispensing, administering, or selling controlled substances
- Drug trafficking
- Kidnapping, arson, aggravated assault, or burglary if this is your second time committing the offense
- Aggravated stalking
- Street gang crime and terrorism
If you’ve committed any of these crimes, you will not be granted bail unless you petition the court for a bond motion to be heard in a Superior Court. However, this can take many weeks, and no bond amount is guaranteed. The bond motion only allows for the Superior Court to review your arrest record, the nature of your offense, and your arrest history, as well as the crime you are accused of committing now. Sometimes your standing in the community is looked at, as well as if you pose a danger to your community. ASAP Bail Bonds notes that in Gwinnett County, only a very small percentage of these requests result in bail being granted.
THE BOTTOMLINE FOR FELONIES IN GWINNETT COUNTY
If you commit a felony, you may not be eligible for bail, depending on the offense and your unique circumstances. Most likely, if you are granted bail, your bail will be higher than misdemeanor charges. However, besides the stated laws above, the amount of the bail is up to the discretion of the judge, who can take into account any mitigating circumstances and the like. This is why at your bail hearing your attorney will be able to explain the facts of your arrest to the judge or magistrate and hopefully get you a lesser bail amount.
WHEN YOU NEED A BAIL BOND IN GWINNETT COUNTY
ASAP Bail Bonds in Gwinnett County is here to help you with bail. We offer bail bonds in exchange for your promise to show up at your appointed court date. The cost for bail bond services is calculated based on the amount of your bail set at your bail hearing, which is usually about 10 percent of your bail amount. Once you or your responsible party (usually a family member) pays this premium to us, our bailsman will handle all of the paperwork with the courts to get your bail met. Then you will be released from jail.
ASAP Bail Bonds understand that the bail bond process can be complicated, which is why we are here to answer any and all questions you may have at any time. We are open 24/7 when you need us. Give us a call today!