Private Surety Bail Fosters Accountability in the Criminal Justice System

• October 18, 2010
• by Collateral Staff

[caption id="attachment_237" align="alignleft" width="250" caption="Bail system fosters accountability"][/caption]

Accountability is defined as "the quality or state of being accountable; an obligation or willingness to accept responsibility or to account for one's actions." Being accountable is accepting responsibility to do the right thing for the right reasons; being accountable earns respect and trust of others. The private surety bail industry has shown for decades that it is the most efficient and effective method of pretrial release - in other words, the most accountable system of release from jail.

The United States' bail system has evolved from a system developed in England during the Middle Ages. The Sixth Amendment to the Constitution states that all people under arrest must "be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation they face," and also allows a person to demand bail if he or she is accused of a bailable offense.

There are many forms of release from jail but none is more accountable than the private surety bail industry. With release on a private surety bail bond, a private and local bail agent accepts accountability for the defendant's return for all court proceedings. The bail agent charges the defendant and not the taxpayers to provide this service. Once the responsibility of release is transferred to the bail agent, it is that agent's job and financial responsibility to make sure the defendant returns to court. The private surety bail industry is accountable for appearance of the defendant ... financially accountable when a defendant fails to appear ... and accountable to the courts and the criminal justice system.

Opponents of a monetary system of release from jail have used scare tactics and falsehoods and led the community to believe that it is wrong for defendants to have to "pay their way out of jail." They say by requiring monetary release, too many defendants will languish in jail. The reality is, however, that most defendants can come up with the small premium required for release or have family or friends post it for them. Surety bail is the only system that integrates family and friends into the bail contract as extra accountability that the defendant will appear for court and refrain from further criminal activity.

However, many of the very same opponents that disparage monetary bail, mostly those who run their own government-funded pretrial release programs using tax dollars, suddenly want to embrace the concept of monetary release from jail as long as they can manage the process. All over the country, credit card vendors are being allowed to set up shop within county jails so defendants can simply "swipe their way out of jail," with no oversight to ensure those defendants show up for court. And, a percentage of those "swipe and go charges" are returned to the entity that runs the jail.

Surety bail agents are highly regulated and licensed professionals who are held accountable to high standards. However, out-of-state credit card vendors have no such accountability. When a defendant fails to show for court under such a system, it is the taxpayers who will be accountable for the cost. The private surety bail industry has never said that people who can't afford a monetary bail should remain in jail simply because of their lack of financial resources.

As a colleague aptly said in a recent blog posting, "if you can afford a private attorney, you aren't entitled to a public defender; if you can afford groceries, you don't get food stamps; if you can afford your rent, you don't get Section Eight housing; if you can afford health insurance, you don't get Medicaid; if you can afford to post your own bail or someone can post on your behalf, you don't get free release by the taxpayers."

The private surety bail industry is like any other small business ... bail agents work hard, pay their taxes and contribute time and money in their communities. The private surety bail industry will continue to promote the public safety benefits and taxpayer savings the industry provides. We will continue to be accountable in all that we do.

Melanie Ledgerwood oversees Government Relations and Research for Accredited Surety and Casualty Company, Inc. She is also a guest contributor to the Bail Report.

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