By Melissa Lampert, KHTS Staff Writer
If you or your loved one needs to be bailed out of jail, do you know what ethical standards you should make sure your bail agent meets? At All American Bail Bonds in Santa Clarita, the bail agents want the community to know what they should expect from their bail bonds company.
“Not all bail bonds companies have their clients’ best interests in mind,” said Inessa Chavez, vice president of All American Bail Bonds in Santa Clarita. “It’s important to hold your bail agent to the highest ethical standards when entrusting them with something so important.”
First and foremost, bail agents should be well-informed about current and proposed laws, regulations, public policies and current events that may affect their clients, according to the Bail Resource Center & Career Academy.
The possible consequences, liabilities or penalties associated with a criminally accused person’s release from jail should also be fully and completely disclosed to the arrestee or the loved one undertaking the bail bonds, called the indemnitor.
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“For example, when a parent purchases a bond to have their son or daughter bailed out from jail, they become the indemnitor,” Chavez explained. “If the defendant then skips bail, meaning they failed to arrive in court, the indemnitor is responsible for expenses to locate the person, as well as payment of the entire bond amount.”
In this situation, the indemnitor should be quickly and formally notified of all possible liabilities and penalties as soon as the bail agent learns of the defendant’s non-appearance.
Indemnitors should be given a “true copy” of all documents related to the legal contract they are committing themselves to with the bail bonds company as well.
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If for any reason the bail agent decides they cannot undertake a person’s bail after examining the facts and bail application, they should immediately inform all parties so other means of release can be sought.
“Above all else, your bail agent should fully comply with all laws and regulations related to bail,” Chavez said. “At All American Bail Bonds in Santa Clarita, we take these laws very seriously and hold all of our bail agents to the highest ethical standards.”
Article Source: “California 20-Hour Bail/Recovery Pre-Licensing Education, Volume 1” by the Bail Resource Center & Career Academy
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Santa Clarita, CA 91355
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If your loved one is in custody and they wish to talk to an All American Bail Bonds representative, call:
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