Today’s post is about the defendant responsibilities as related to secured bonds in Virginia. A secured bond is when property or money must be paid to post a bond for a defendant. As we have stated in previous posts this can be done in multiple ways in the state of Virginia. But this post is going to cover the responsibilities of the defendant.
This post is not meant to provide legal advice and will not cover all possible scenarios. This is just a general picture and information of how the process works.
Secured Bonds: Defendant Responsibilities
Who is the defendant?
The defendant is the person who is in the custody of the authorities and is being charged with a crime. They are the person that the bond is being posted for to allow them to leave custody of the authorities.
As the defendant your loved one, friend, coworker, etc. is either paying money they will not get back or putting up their home or car as collateral for your bond.
What does the defendant have to do?
The defendant is required to show up to court on time for each and every court date. The bond is over only when the case is finalized. Finalized meaning the court dismisses the charges or sentences the defendant. It is the defendant’s responsibility to ensure they know when and where each of their court dates are. In the state of Virginia a defendant can look up their court information here.
What happens when the defendant does not uphold their responsibilities?
IF the defendant choses not to show up for court, your friend or family member that bonded you out will be responsible to pay that bond in full or turn you into the authorities. Missing court also makes it harder for you to get a bond in the future or causes your bond to be set higher. Having charges of Failure to Appears on your records means that bondsman will require additional money beyond the normal fee to be used as collateral or some item as collateral or they may refuse to bond you at all.
The bond remains intact until the defendant is returned to custody if you return the defendant to the jail (meeting the bondsman) there wouldn’t be additional charges if the bondsman has to do the research to locate the defendant and go to pick them up, it will cost more. We would also give the defendant the opportunity to have someone else take over their bond. (There is a fee to change cosigners.)
We hope this helps answer some of your questions today! If you still have more questions check out our FAQ page!
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