FAQ

The mission statement of North Country Bail Bonds, LLC is to provide prompt, courteous, professional bail bond services to the citizens of Upstate New York and their families while fully complying with the provisions of the laws of the State of New York and procedures of the Courts of the State of New York. We know that the family members of a person charged with a crime are under pressure and stress. We will treat you and your family with professionalism and not make a bad situation worse.

When a person is arrested, the judge usually sets bail in two amounts: One amount for cash bail and another amount for bail bond. For example, a person charged with a crime may have a cash bail of $5,000.00 and a bail bond of $10,000.00. If the defendant’s family has immediate access to $5,000.00 in cash, they can secure the defendant’s release by depositing the $5,000.00 in cash at the jail and the defendant will be released. However, if the family does not have $5,000.00 available, a bail bondsman can secure the release of a family member with payment of a much lesser amount, depending upon the amount of the bond, starting at 10% of the bond amount for smaller bonds and 6% of the bond amount for larger bonds. Simply put, using a bail bondsman is a way of getting a loved one home while the case is pending when a family can’t afford the full amount of the cash bail.

Under New York law, “Bail” means cash bail or a bail bond.

“Cash bail” means a sum of money, in the amount designated in an order fixing bail, posted by the defendant or a family member with the court or the Sheriff’s Department, upon the condition that such money will become forfeit to the court if the defendant does not comply with the directions of a court requiring his attendance at the criminal action or proceeding involved or does not otherwise render himself amenable to the orders and processes of the court.

“Bail bond” means a written undertaking, executed by one or more obligors, that the defendant will, while at liberty as a result of an order fixing bail and of the posting of the bail bond in satisfaction thereof, appear in a designated criminal action or proceeding when his attendance is required and otherwise render himself amenable to the orders and processes of the court, and that in the event that he fails to do so the obligor or obligors will pay to the Court a specified sum of money, in the amount designated in the order fixing bail.

The amount charged for a bail bond is a percentage of the total bond amount. The rates start at 10% for smaller bonds and decrease as the amount of the bonds increase. For a free consultation on the bail bond process, call 518-788-2953 or 518-361-1039 and a licensed bail bond agent will be happy to discuss the exact amount necessary to secure the release of your family member.

Under New York law, the full amount of the cash bail must be deposited with the Court or the Sheriff’s Department to secure the release of the defendant. For example, if the cash bail is $10,000, the family of the defendant must post $10,000.00 in order to secure the release of the defendant.

Of course, every defendant is presumed innocent and there is no good reason for anyone charged with a crime to spend one more minute behind bars than necessary until he is actually convicted of a crime. But there are other important reasons to secure the immediate release of a loved one as soon as possible:

• Jails are not safe places and the risk of harm is greatest during the initial periods of incarceration.
• Jobs are hard to come by and employers will not necessarily keep a job open if weeks and months go by before your loved one is released.
• It is a lot easier to defend a false charge when you are free as opposed to being stuck behind bars. Defendants who can freely meet with their attorneys and who are free to assist in their defense have a far better chance of being acquitted or receiving a favorable plea bargain than a defendant who can only meet with his attorney in a jail or for a few minutes before court proceedings.
• If your loved one is innocent and acquitted, he never gets the time back that he spends in jail while awaiting his case to be heard. That time is lost forever.
• If your loved one has children, then the children need their parent free, not stuck behind bars.