As a consequence of misunderstanding, over glorification and greed regarding the bail bond industry as a whole, there are many entities that have come to despise the private industry and actively seek to take the process to a publicly run service. In the article “Facts Regarding The Commercial Bail Industry”, published by Accredited Surety and Casualty Company, Inc. on October of 2012, Melanie Ledgerwood identifies and alleges “Taxpayer-funded pretrial services programs continue their attack on the commercial bail industry with an all out call to eliminate the industry.
These entities are the: National Association of Pretrial Services Agencies (NAPSA), Pretrial Justice Institute (PJI), Justice Policy Institute (JPI) and the American Bar Association (ABA).” (Melanie Ledgerwood, 2012). Infringement of rights, discrimination of wealth, regulatory violations by bondsmen/bail enforcement and criminal activity by bondsmen/bail enforcement are just some of the many allegations that the bail industry has come under scrutiny for and further identified by this article.
Of greatest fact, is that with the information provided by Melanie Ledgerwood in her “Facts Regarding The Commercial Bail Industry” article, her statements that there are organizations attacking the bail industry are not a new concept. In the 1978 law review by Dr. Virgil L. Williams of The University of Alabama, titled “Nine Reasons To Go Slow On Bail Bond Reform”, Dr. Williams provides substantial information on the political atmosphere facing the bail industry at that time.
The arguments being made to support commercial bail bonds, as well as supporting the establishing of a strong working relationship between court, bondsmen, bail enforcement and law enforcement is still an effective argument 34 years later. Dr. Williams further states on page 11”Personal recognizance systems [pretrial release programs] are established to provide relief for suspects who cannot afford to use commercial bail bond companies; however, once established, personal recognizance [pretrial release programs] is available to persons who might otherwise have utilized the services of such companies.
The outcome of implementing such reform is destruction of a private industry with government usurping the functions previously performed by private enterprise. The bail bond industry, like other segments of the private sector of our economy, arose in response to a need for its services.”(Dr. Virgil Williams, 1978).
Part 2 0f 2 will be published August 17th, 2015.
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Cited Sources
Melanie Ledgerwood, D. o. (2012, October). Facts Regarding The Commercial Bail Industry. Orlando, Florida. Retrieved from https://www.accredited-inc.com/pdf/news/com-bail-facts.pdf