Definition

• A criminal cash bond is a payment that defendants or their family members can make in certain cases to secure a release from jail. Most defendants have the right to post a cash bond except in cases of special flight risk or danger to the community. Judges set cash bond values based on local schedules for each type of crime. Once a defendant's case is resolved, or disposed, the person who posted the cash bond will receive the money back. However, in some cases a court will use the money to cover fees or fines from a prior case and return only a partial amount of the cash.
  
  

Function

• In most cases, individuals can post cash bonds either at the courthouse of the jail where the defendant is being held. Each institution may have its own hours and policies for accepting the payment. Despite the name "criminal cash bond," the payment can take the form of cash, a money order or a cashier's check. Cash bonds usually need to be in the exact amount required. Since the court must receive the money from a cash bond to issue an order to release a defendant from jail, paying at the jail can result in a delay of release or the extra step of taking a receipt to the court as proof of payment.
  
  

Pros and Cons

• The key advantage of criminal cash bonds is that they allow a defendant to return to his normal life while awaiting trial. Cash bonds also eliminate the fees that other forms of borrowed bail cost when a third party supplies the money. The downside of a cash bond is the fact that the person who pays the money stands to lose it if the defendant fails to appear in court or owes money to the court. In addition, whoever submits a cash bond is without the money until after the trial, which may mean that the money is unavailable for many months.
  
  

Alternatives

• There are two major alternatives to paying a criminal cash bond, The first is to do nothing, which requires the defendant to remain in jail until a trial date. The second alternative is requesting a bond from a bail bondsman. Bail bondsmen charge fees to provide loans that serve as bail for a defendant. Typical fees are 10 percent of the bond amount. The defendant pays this fee regardless of the outcome of a trial.