Jump bail
Encyclopedia
To jump bail, or skip bail, is a legal idiom in which a person who has posted bail and been released on bail subsequently fails to appear in criminal court with the intention of avoiding prosecution, sentencing or imprisonment. In some circumstances a criminal defendant can be declared to have jumped bail even before missing an appearance in court, if it is discovered that he has taken steps towards missing his court appearance.
A person who jumps bail gives up the amount of his posted bail. At that point the court will revoke the bail and issue a warrant for the defendant's arrest.
This idiom uses skip and jump in the sense of "evade", the former dating from about 1900, and the latter dating from the mid-19th century.
s are legal in two countries: the United States
and the Philippines
. If the defendant skips bail, and has posted bail through a bondsman, the bondsman may contact bounty hunters to try to recover the defendant before the bond becomes due. Some U.S. state
s give the bounty hunter as little as three days, while others will give the bounty hunter up to a year.
If the defendant is not turned in within the designated time period, the surety company will collect the amount of the bond from the bondsman, who will then collect the money from the cosigner (or take the loss). If there is a lien on property to secure the bond, the bondsman will start foreclosure proceedings.
A person who jumps bail gives up the amount of his posted bail. At that point the court will revoke the bail and issue a warrant for the defendant's arrest.
This idiom uses skip and jump in the sense of "evade", the former dating from about 1900, and the latter dating from the mid-19th century.
United States law
18 USC 3146, makes skipping bail on felony charges a federal offense, consisting of the following elements:- the person had been admitted to bail pursuant to an order of a Judge or Magistrate of a Court with proper jurisdiction;
- the person thereafter failed to appear before a Judge or Magistrate of a Court with proper jurisdiction as required; and
- the person did so knowingly and willfully.
Bounty hunters
Bounty hunterBounty hunter
A bounty hunter captures fugitives for a monetary reward . Other names, mainly used in the United States, include bail enforcement agent and fugitive recovery agent.-Laws in the U.S.:...
s are legal in two countries: the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
. If the defendant skips bail, and has posted bail through a bondsman, the bondsman may contact bounty hunters to try to recover the defendant before the bond becomes due. Some U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
s give the bounty hunter as little as three days, while others will give the bounty hunter up to a year.
If the defendant is not turned in within the designated time period, the surety company will collect the amount of the bond from the bondsman, who will then collect the money from the cosigner (or take the loss). If there is a lien on property to secure the bond, the bondsman will start foreclosure proceedings.