How To Bail Someone Out of Jail in Texas According to Chris Perri Law
“Hey man,” your friend says, calling from a strange number. “I’m in trouble.”
Or perhaps it is your son on the line: “Mom, I’m really sorry, but I got arrested for a DWI in Austin. Can you get me out of jail?”
Whatever the situation, if a friend, colleague, or loved one calls you asking for help with jail release in Travis County, you may find yourself overwhelmed with what to do. Hopefully, these tips will help you successfully bail someone out of jail in Texas, should you ever find yourself tasked with the job. If you need help at any stage in the process, don’t hesitate to reach out to an experienced Austin jail release attorney such as Chris Perri. He offers free consultations, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and he may be able to help you get someone out of jail.
What Happens When Someone Is Arrested
When a person is arrested for a crime in Texas, they are first taken to a local county jail where they will await to see a magistrate judge. This meeting between the defendant and the judge is known as "magistration." Here, the judge will inform the defendant of their constitutional rights and the cash bail amount set for their release, also commonly referred to as the bond.
The cash bail amount is how much money a person must put up in order to be released from the jail. The money is not a fine, but collateral. The courts will hold that money for the duration of the case proceedings as a way to ensure the defendant shows up for court until the case is resolved. This means that you (or a bonds company) will get the money back once your case results in a verdict.
Usually, magistration happens within a couple of hours following a person's arrest, but sometimes it can take a day or two, depending on the severity of the charge. According to Texas law, the cash bail amount must be set within 24 hours of arrests for misdemeanor offenses, and 48 hours after arrests for felony crimes.
While waiting for the cash bail amount to be set, the defendant must stay in jail. They then can only be released from jail once their bail amount has been paid, or, if in Travis County, they've obtained a personal bond. More on that later.
What You Can Do to Get Your Friend Out of Jail
To help get someone out of jail, you’ll need to hire them a lawyer and/or get their bail amount paid—and this probably means fronting some costs.
At the time your friend in jail calls you, they may or may not yet know their bail amount yet. That’s okay. The magistrate judge will set the amount soon, and once they do, the information will be public. For Travis County, you can find out the cash bail amount on the county sheriff’s website. For other counties, it depends, but you can call the jail directly to find out. Remember, the cash bail amount may also be called a bond amount.
For central Texas counties, here is where you can find out bail amounts online:
Travis County: https://www.tcsheriff.org/sips#/sip
Hays County: http://public.co.hays.tx.us/JailingSearch.aspx?ID=400
Williamson County: https://judicialrecords.wilco.org/PublicAccess/JailingSearch.aspx?ID=400
Once you know the cash bail amount, you have a couple of options:
You can either put up the entire cash bail amount yourself.
You can hire a bondsperson, who will put up the entire amount for you. In exchange, you must pay them 10-20% of the bail amount. This is their fee, and you will never get that amount back (unless, of course, the arrested person pays you back—then they will never get it back).
But there is a third option: You can also reach out to a qualified jail release attorney in Austin like Chris Perri, who can help with the entire process. A lawyer can speed things along if the courts are moving slowly. They also can recommend a bondsperson, and even directly handle the coordination with them, if you’d prefer.
Basically, once you pay the courts, a lawyer, or a bonds company, your role is done. The professionals will handle the logistics from there, and soon, your loved one will be released from jail.
Personal Bonds in Travis County
If the arrest occurred in Travis County, the defendant may be eligible for what’s known as a “personal bond.” These are sometimes granted automatically for low-level offenses such as shoplifting or criminal trespassing, but chances are that if someone is calling you from jail, they haven’t been granted a personal bond.
But a criminal defense attorney can help. During the phone call, your loved one may have a lawyer in mind—someone they want you to call on their behalf. However, if you are tasked with finding one, click here for tips on how to choose the best criminal defense attorney in Austin.
To get a personal bond, a criminal defense lawyer makes the case to a judge that the arrested person doesn’t need to put up cash bail to ensure they will come to court. The lawyer is essentially vouching for their client -- that their client will definitely come to court.
At that point, it is the discretion of the magistrate judge on whether or not to agree to a personal bond. When making the decision, judges typically consider:
Severity of offense
Criminal history
Victim input
History of failing to appear before court
Austin Jail Release Attorney Chris Perri Can Help
Whether the arrest occurred in Travis, Hays, or Williamson County, Chris Perri Law is here to help. With over 15 years of experience in criminal defense and jail release, Chris has helped countless clients recover from misdemeanor and felony arrests and get their lives back on track.
If you or someone you care about is in trouble, or you need to help someone get out of jail in Austin, call Chris Perri at (512) 269-0260 or contact us here for a FREE consultation.