Hathian has what is SUPPOSED to be, one of the lowest economic rates in the entirety of the US. As such, it is simply amazing at the number of people who seem to manage to come up with tens of thousands of dollars IN CASH to pay for bail.

So at some Urging, I am posting the following information in hope it will assist with accurately managing to pay some bail.

When you "post bail," you are paying the amount that your bail was set at. This can generally be done in a few ways, including:

Paying by cash or check in the amount of your bail;
Signing over ownership rights to property that has a cash value that is equal to or exceeds the amount of your bail;
Giving a bond (a promise to pay if you do not appear) in the full amount of your bail; or
Signing a statement that says you will appear in court at the required time, generally called "being released on your own recognizance."

Generally, if you can be released on your own recognizance, you should try to take that option. However, many people are forced to purchase a bail bond in order to get released from jail. A bond is much like a check that you give to a friend, asking him or her not to cash it until you say it's okay to do so. Generally, the purchase price of the bond is about 10% of the value. Therefore, if your bail is set at $5000, you can expect to pay about $500 in order to purchase a bail bond.

If you have the chance to avoid getting a bail bond in order to get out of jail, it is often good advice to take that second option. If you appear at court and proceed with all requirements thereof, you will generally get the full amount of your bail returned back to you (minus some small, administrative fees from the court). However, if you buy a bail bond, you are already out 10% of your bail amount (this is generally not refundable), and you will also probably have to give the bail bondsman some collateral in order to get the bond (such as an interest in your car or home). If you fail to appear in court at a required time, the bondsman can cash in on the collateral you gave, meaning that he or she could sell your property and take the money from the sale.

Your local CS office can arrange a lawyer more often than not that can assist with either obtaining a bail bond, or attempting to negotiate with the HPD for some other release option.