Title 18 of the United States Code § 3146 covers penalty for failure to appear. This happens when a person who has been released pending judicial proceedings fails to appear before a court as required by conditions of release. Under both state and federal law, missing a court appearance after bailing out of jail is definitely a crime.
The moment you post bail, the most important condition of your bond is your agreement to appear at each and every court hearing. It is your responsibility to know when and where your hearings will happen. Make sure to call your nearest bail bond office to help you with your court appearance schedules.
So what happens when a defendant jumps bail and fails to appear in court as required?
1. The bail bond is forfeited. The property or money that you deposited as collateral for the bail bond may not be returned to you. Call a bail bonds officer immediately to assist you with your bail conditions and whatever issues you are facing.
2. The court will issue a warrant for your arrest on “Failure to Appear (FTA)” charges. This is a completely new crime on top of your existing charges. Don’t wait to call your bail bond office right away because Failure to Appear can result in you getting held in jail again after being arrested and having to pay for a new bail bond amount.
3. The defendant will be slapped with additional charges. That means more payments and having to approach your local bail bond office once again to cover the cost of bail on your behalf.
In the event that the defendant does miss a court appearance date, they need to act quickly and contact their bail bonding agent immediately without delay. The bail bonding agent will be able to provide a “consent of surety”, which can be shown to the court in order to ask for a new court date. If you do not have a bail bond agent, you will have to make arrangements and fill out the proper paperwork yourself.
Getting slapped with bail jumping charges or “Failure to Appear” will be a hassle and will go on your record as another crime, which does nothing to help your reputation in the future. Make sure you have a reliable bail bondsman on your side to help take care of everything.
If you must call a bail bonds agent, Lucero’s Bail Bonds provides prompt and professional bail bond service 24/7. We have been serving the Front Range since 1982 with our team of knowledgeable and experienced bondsman. Whatever bond amount you need, we are here for you.
Contact us today at 303-573-5555!
