Are you confused about bail vs bond? For first-time users of bail bonds, things can be a bit complicated. While trying to learn what next steps to take to get your loved one out of jail, unknown terms may be casually thrown around, making you question “what does this all mean?” A quick bail bond vocabulary can be helpful.
To avoid confusion and to make the bail bonds process as simple and easy as possible, and while these are not necessarily legal definitions, here is 3-D Bail Bond’s guide to must-know bail bond vocabulary for those new to the bail experience.
Updated Bail Bond Vocabulary List:
Appeal Bonds
Arraignment
Bail
Bail Agency
Bail Agent
Bail Bond Surrender
Bail Bonds
Bail Condition
Bail Money
Bond
Bond Forfeiture
Bond Liabilities
Bond Premium
Booking
Cash Bond
Collateral
Co-Signer
Defendant
Due Process
Exoneration
Failure to Appear
Felony
Incarceration
Indemnitor
Inmates
Jail
Judge
Judicial Officer
Misdemeanor
Non-Surety Bond
Parole
Plea
Pretrial
Pretrial Conditional Release
Pretrial Detention
Prison
Probable Cause
Probation
Prosecutor
Protection/Restraining Order
Secured Bond
Skipping Bail
Surety Bond
Unsecured Bond
Warrant
Withdrawal of Bail
Bail Bond Terms Commonly Used in Connecticut
As part of this bail bond vocabulary, we included some common terms you may hear at a courthouse and police departments or county prisons.
Appeal Bonds
An appeal is a bond to release a defendant who has been found guilty and is appealing the case.
Arraignment
The first court proceeding in a criminal case, which includes the formal reading of charges against the defendant.
Bail
A monetary amount that is set for the release of an arrested person by the arresting agency, a bail commissioner or a Judge. If bail has been set, it has to be paid before the defendant can be released from custody.
Bail Agency
This is where bail agents work. A bail bond agency consists of a team of bail agents and financial experts who will back the defendant through the bail bonds process. They can offer many legal resources and assistance.
Bail Agent or Bail Bondsman
A licensed individual who facilitates the bail bond posting for the defendant. They execute bail bonds at jails, prisons and courts or any other legal facilities and handle the bail in person. Everything related to bail bonds will go through them.
Bail Bonds
A common process by which arrested individuals will be released from legal holding facilities. The release is done with the backing of a bail agency who will pledge money for a defendant to be released, with the promise that the defendant will return to court once summoned.
Bail Bond Surrender
Similar to withdrawal of bail, surrendering a bail bond means cancelling the bond. The agency will have to bring the suspect and surrender him to police or court.
Bail Condition
Conditions that a defendant must follow upon their release by the process of bail bonds. If these conditions aren’t followed, the defendant and responsible co-signer could lose their bail investment or have their bond revoked.
Bail Money
The funds for bail or the monetary amount that a person has to pay for bail services.
Bond
The agreement between a defendant and/or a bail agency with the court that allows the defendant to be released from custody with the promise of returning to court for any hearings they are summoned to.
Bond Forfeiture
A bond forfeiture happens when the defendant fails to appear in court and the judge orders the bond forfeited. In Connecticut the judge then orders a statutory stay of execution on the forfeiture of 6 months, which gives the surety time to produce the principal before the forfeited bond becomes due and payable.
Bond Liabilities
These are risks that bail agencies take when bailing an individual out of jail. The agency takes all responsibilities, as well as the repercussions if the defendant doesn’t show at court.
Bond Premium
This is the amount that defendants will have to pay to the bail agency for their services. This amount will typically be a small percentage of the original set bail, ranging anywhere from 7% to 10%.
Booking
Booking is the process of recording someone’s information after their arrest. This includes the person’s name and offense they were charged for, fingerprinting, taking mugshots, confiscation of the defendant’s clothing and any other personal items, a full-body search, health and history screenings, and warrant checks.
Cash Bond
This is the process of paying an entire bail amount fully in cash. The money will be held by the court until the conclusion of the trial, where the money may be returned to the payer of the bond. In Connecticut, cash bonds funds could be used to pay fines, and fees when necessary.
Collateral
A form of security deposit offered in addition to the bail fees to secure the release of a person who’s been arrested. This can include anything from personal valuables to large investments such as cars and houses.
Co-Signer
A person who will sign the bond on behalf of the defendant. The co-signer takes certain financial responsibility for the defendant once released, meaning that the co-signer may be responsible for financial compensation in the case that the defendant doesn’t show at court and is not returned to the court within the time prescribed by law. Once the co-signer signs for the bond, then the defendant can be released by the licensed bail agent.
Defendant
The accused, arrested, or defending side in a legal court case.
Due Process
Fair and equal treatment through the legal system. Legal matters are resolved according to preset rules and precedents.
Exoneration
A bail bond is exonerated when the legal process/trial has finished. The exoneration happens after the defendant’s case is adjudicated, regardless of the outcome the bond is discharged.
Failure to Appear
When a defendant does not appear at court when called upon. This is also known as “FTA”.
Felony
A crime that is typically seen as more serious than a misdemeanor. They will usually include crimes that involve violence.
Incarceration
The process of a person being held or locked up in a jail or prison.
Indemnitor
The person who co-signs a bail bond agreement for the release of a defendant.
Inmates
Those who are incarcerated in jails or prisons like correctional facilities.
Jail
A legal facility that is used to hold those awaiting trial. Jails are considered the lockup within police departments, and holding areas within a facility where a person is placed in custody.
Judicial Officer
A person who has the authority to facilitate and preside over decisions made in the court of law. Their actions can be reviewed by the judge.
Judge
An appointed official who is granted the authority to preside and determine legal matters in a court of law.
Misdemeanor
A minor wrongdoing. It is a small crime that won’t equal large amounts of time in jail or costs in fines.
Non-Surety Bond
A non-surety bond is a method of releasing an accused with a dollar amount attached as a purported bond that has no real meaning as there is no surety or backing for the “bond”.
Parole
This term is used for sentenced offenders who are released before their sentence is over. A parole officer will supervise them to ensure that they follow all conditions of their early release.
Plea
Formal answer given by a defendant to the charges against them in an arraignment. Pleas typically fall into “guilty” or “not guilty”.
Pretrial
Pretrial is the time and activities occurring in the court proceedings prior to the actual trial.
Pretrial Detention
Pretrial detention is the act of detaining or keeping someone locked up in jail, while they await their court dates.
Pretrial Conditional Release
These are conditions that a judge will impose upon a defendant for their release, such as wearing an ankle monitor out of custody.
Prison
A legal facility that is used to hold those convicted of crimes. In Connecticut, inmates under pretrial custody who did not post bail can be sent here following their initial arraignment.
Probable Cause
Reasonable means for a legal officer to make a search, press a charge, or to take action against an individual.
Probation
A period of time when an offender has to follow certain conditions laid out by the court under the supervision of a probation officer as an alternative to incarceration.
Protection/Restraining Order
A court order used by a judge to protect a person from abuse, violence, harassment, or assault.
Prosecutor
A lawyer or other public official who will conduct a case against a defendant in court representing the interests of the state.
Secured Bond
This means that someone will post something of value that equals the bail amount of the defendant to be released. This could be cash, surety or real property that will be held by the court until the conclusion of the trial, when the security will be returned to the defendant.
Skipping Bail
A term used to describe a defendant who missed their court date while out on bail. Therefore, the defendant has skipped out on their bail. They give up the right to freedom and a rearrest order is issued.
Surety Bond
A type of bond with insurance backing it.
Unsecured Bond
This process means that the defendant will be released without having to pay bail or without securing their release through personal property. An unsecured bond is an agreement between the defendant and the court without security, that the defendant will appear at court when called upon.
Warrant
A warrant is an order allowing legal officials to arrest a defendant at any time or location as long as the warrant is signed. A warrant must be signed by a judge.
A judge could issue a re-arrest warrant for a defendant if they fail to appear at court, violate conditions of a restraining order, or violate conditions of their release.
Withdrawal of Bail
A bondsman can request that the court withdraw the bond that was initially made between the bondsman and a defendant. If the court approves, then the defendant will be return returned to custody.
This bail bonds vocabulary was contributed by Drew Bloom, a seasoned bail bondsman in the state of Connecticut, and Morgan Kicks. Bondsman Drew is an active advocate for bail legislation for almost three decades. He’s a founding member and served as president of the Bail Association in Connecticut.