Failed to appear in court. Now what?
If a defendant fails to appear to a court date, and the bond is forfeited, the bondsman will be given a demand to either pay the full value of the bond to the courts or return the defendant to custody. Upon this failure to appear (FTA), the bondsman will contract a bail enforcement agent and will begin investigative steps to discover the location of the defendant and/or secure the apprehension (when applicable) of the defendant. Once the defendant is apprehended (when applicable), the defendant will be surrendered to the County/State in which the bond was posted (when applicable).
If the bondsman has established and can prove that the defendant under their charge is going to fail to appear, or has been violating their terms of release, the bondsman will contract with a bail enforcement entity to have the defendant returned to the judge/court who issued and set the original bail for the purposes of having bail revoked. It is in this circumstance that the bondsman and bail enforcement entity will have to prove the validity of their claim and reason to revoke the bond and risk to public safety, possibly in a hearing.
Most law enforcement agencies do not have the financial capabilities or personnel to investigate the whereabouts of individuals’ fugitive status. This is most relevant for any crime other than a felony. For those fugitives, the only opportunity of being located and arrested is through routine law enforcement duties such as a traffic stop. Until capture, they remain in the public, typically committing new or similar crimes in order to survive.
If a defendant fails to appear to a court date, the bondsman will be given a demand to either pay the full value of the bond to the courts or return the defendant to custody. Upon this failure to appear, the bondsman will begin investigative steps to secure the apprehension of the defendant. Once the defendant is apprehended, the defendant will be surrendered to the county of which the bond originated. If there was collateral received to secure the procurement of the bond, the bondsman can apply any costs or fees against it. If a cosigner or indemnitor was also party to the transaction, they will be called upon to uphold their obligation to the bond by either assisting in locating the defendant or issuing payment for any expenses or fees incurred because of the failure to appear.
In the event that you or someone you love is in need of a bail bondsman, don’t hesitate to contact AAA Bail Bonds at 612-900-3400.
