Maybe you never imagined that you would be searching for a bail bond company in Nashville, or anywhere else, for that matter. You may not even be sure of exactly how bail works or what to do. But now, unexpectedly, you find yourself needing to bail your friend out of jail. Or, your loved one has made that one phone call and you were it. When this happens, most people do not know where to turn.
When bail is set, it is usually an amount that most people can’t afford on their own. It is supposed to be a substantial enough sum that it guarantees that the defendant will show up in court. Because most people don’t have that kind of money sitting around ready to pay into the justice system, a bail bond allows the defendant to be released from jail so that they can be free while awaiting their court date.
A bail bond company will pay the bail amount to the court. In return, the defendant must pay the company back the original amount, plus a fee. In Nashville, as in other areas of Tennessee, this fee is usually 10% of the original bond amount. The bail bondsman will also involve family and friends in the process to ensure that the defendant shows up in court. The official term for the person who actually posts the bail for the defendant is “bail bond indemnitor.” The bail bond indemnitor has a responsibility to the court and to the bail bondsman to make sure that the defendant makes the court date. If, for some reason, the defendant “jumped bail” and did not show up, the indemnitor can be held liable. This is why if you think that your friend or loved one might not show up for court, you will not want to post bail for them.
In most cases, however, defendants make their court dates and are simply looking for someone to get them out of jail until the court date. If you know that your friend will show up for court or that your loved one has no intention of leaving you in the lurch, you will want to contact a bail bondsman so that the release process can begin as soon as possible. Despite the urgency that you may feel about the situation, the paperwork and procedures required to bond out a defendant from the Nashville judicial system can take quite a bit of time, so getting started as soon as possible means less time that the defendant is sitting in a jail cell. Once all of your paperwork is completed with the bondsman, then the bond will be posted at the jail. After bond is posted, there is still a lot of paperwork that must be completed at the jail itself, but eventually, your friend or loved one will be released.
