Bail Blotter: Judges Want Suggestions About Bond Rules

• July 08, 2012
• by AboutBail Staff
• In the News

Each week AboutBail combs the web for the latest and most interesting industry news stories to bring you the Weekly Bail Blotter.

Probation Fees Keep People in Jail

CHILDERSBURG, AL –  A class action lawsuit has been filed against Harpersville, Alabama, alleging that the city’s probation fees for minor offenses keep people in jail and create unreasonable fees. Richard Earl Garrett is the lead plaintiff. He owes more than $10,000 and has spent 24 months in jail for traffic violations dating back ten years. Garrett and other plaintiffs note that those who already do not have much money often face huge fees and jail time for minor infractions. Their cases are handed over to probation companies, who pursue legal fees on behalf of the city. Garrett and others claim that the probation companies and the city levy fees and do not tell defendants about their rights or about options.

To read the full article, click here.

Bondsman Pleads Guilty to Illegally Using Inmates to Drum up Business

SANTA ANA, CA – James Everett Morris Jr., a Santa Ana California bondsman, has pled guilty to using an inmate in Orange County Jail to illegally drum up business. Morris paid the inmate to let him know when there were new inmates in need of a bondsman. Morris will face sentencing in September. He will face up to six months in jail and his license will be suspended. 

To read the full article, click here.

Woman Having Trouble with Bail

KENNER, LA – Margaret Sanchez has had her bail reduced but is still in jail. She is accused of harboring a sex offender and she is a suspect in the death of Jaren Lockhart. Sanchez also faces charges of resisting an officer and failure to signal. Her bail was originally set at $250,000 but was reduced to $35,000. However, it appears that her family is having trouble coming up with the bond or the money for a bondsman. Her case is not unusual. Many Louisiana bondsmen say that since the economic downturn that people are having a harder time coming up with the cash and collateral needed for bail. 

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Hamilton County Criminal Court Judges Mull Over Bondsmen’s Complaints

HAMILTON COUNTY, TN – Judges in Hamilton County Criminal Court have been hearing complaints from Tennessee bondsmen about other local bonding agencies. The judges could rule to create a formal investigation into the allegations made in court. According to some of the bondsmen speaking in court, jail employees allegedly allow some bondsmen to make bonds in restricted jail areas.  Other complaints say that people inside the jail leak information to certain bondsmen’s businesses to give them an advantage which is in violation of bonding rules. 

To read the full article, click here.

Judges Want Ideas About Bond Rules

HAMILTON COUNTY, TN – Judges Don Poole, Barry Steelman and Rebecca Stern have been listening to bondsmen speak about the industry at a hearing about Tennessee bonding businesses. There are 35 bonding companies in the area and at the hearing a number of bondsmen have made allegations about the unethical or illegal practices of other bondsmen in the area. Due to the conflicts, the judges have stated that stricter industry rules are needed to stop the disagreements among the businesses. The judges have ruled that they wish to hear suggestions for regulation changes over the next month. Another change, one that will go into effect immediately, is that inmates at the Hamilton County Jail will need to indicate a bondsman on their paperwork for release. This will handle one of the most common problems, whereby bonding companies dispute over one inmate. 

To read the full article, click here.

Bondsmen Bring Suspect from Louisiana to Connecticut

NEWINGTON, CT – Bondsmen from 24/7 Bailbonds LLC faced a forfeiture of $5,000 in bail after suspect August E. Bennett III failed to make a court appearance. Connecticut bondsmen from the company travelled all the way to Louisiana to apprehend the suspect and return him to Connecticut. Bennett faces charges of assault, reckless endangerment and breach of peace. 

To read the full article, click here. 

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