Bail Bonds in Harris County, GA – Ultimate Guide! Find Bondsmen, How Bail Works, Bail Costs

Upon arrest anywhere in the state of Georgia, a person is usually processed at the local county jail. In order to be released from jail, several steps must occur, including being 'booked in' and posting bail - the process of booking in typically consists of getting your mugshot and fingerprints taken, and having your arrest details put into the system. When the bail amount is confirmed, you will have a few bail bond options to consider before you can be released. After posting bail using one of the 4 options available to you, the jail release process begins and typically takes anywhere from one to two hours to complete.

Before using a bail bondsman, you should know all bail options in Georgia in order to be released from jail. Bail bondsmen will fall under surety, or bail bonds, which typically cost around 10 to 15% of the total bail amount. You cannot get this fee back in Georgia, no matter if you are guilty or not. It's the cost of using a bail bondsman and the risk they take. In total, you have 4 bail out options to consider in Georgia.

• Own Recognizance Release in Georgia - The jail can release you on Own Recognizance (OR) which is typically used on smaller crimes committed and the judge finds you low risk and has strong confidence that you will show up to court. You don't need to pay a fee and you simply sign documents promising to appear for your court cases, plus any other stipulations set by the Georgia jail system.
• Cash bail - You can always pay the bail amount with cash or a money order, but you have to pay the entire bail amount. The benefit here is that Georgia will give you back the full bail amount minus any administrative fees upon completion of court dates.
• Georgia Surety Bail Bonds - A Georgia bail bondsman can post the bail amount for you - you will pay the bondsman a fee of 10-15% of the total bail amount which you cannot get back.
• Georgia Property Bail Bonds - You can use personal property or land/home value that's equal or greater than the bail amount. If you don't show up to court or violate your release terms, the Georgia court will issue a warrant for your arrest and can take over your property.

Please know that getting a bail bonds from a Georgia bondsman may come with various contractual agreements. You will need to discuss the full terms with the bondsman, including all fees involved, and what the expectations are after release - do you need to check in with the bondsman on a weekly basis, is there a need for a tracking device, drug/alcohol test, and can you travel out of state? Some of this can be set by the Georgia court and the bondsman. Violating any of these bail processes can result in a warrant for your arrest in Georgia. Make sure to attend all your court cases or you're breaking court and bail terms which will result in arrest. Using the service of a bail bondsman typically requires collateral and someone to co-sign on the bail bond.

We highly recommend reading of our complete guide on how bail bonds work to learn more about the bail process. If you are attempting to bail someone out from another state, you can talk with your local bondsman - that's the bondman in your county, and not the state where the person is detained.

The cost of a bail bond in Georgia can't exceed 15%. There are a few exceptions, however. As defined by Georgia Code 17-6-30, a bondsman can't charge more than a 12% fee for any bonds under $10,000. The 15% max fee applies to anything over $10,000.

Minor offenses of $1,000 or less can typically be handled by simply using the driver's license as collateral rather than a traditional bail bond fee. No other state except Georgia allows minor offenses to be handled in such a simple way.

We recommend reading our guide on how much bail costs for a deep dive into fees bondsmen charge. It's also critical to understand that you do not get bail money back, specifically the 10% bail fee back from the bondsman.

Annual number of crimes that were reported to the police in Harris County, GA. Data is based on FBI crime statistics database.

We provide estimates on average bail prices for different misdemeanor and felony crimes in Harris County, GA. These are estimates since the exact amounts can vary substantially depending on your age, details involving the charge, criminal history, and prior record of not appearing to court.

• Assault – Ranges from $2,500 to $10,000 depending on type of assault
• Drugs – Possession of controlled substance can range from $500 to 2,500 bail
• Robbery - $25,000 to $100,000 bail amount
• Murder – No bail amount set or $1 million in some cases
• Manslaughter – Voluntary manslaughter $100,000 and involuntary starting at $25,000
• DWI / DUI - $500 to $2,500 depending on history and details surrounding the offense
• Public Intoxication – Typically $200 to $500
• Burglary - $20,000 minimum but up to $50,000 in some areas

Check our detailed guide to learn more about how bail is determined, find additional bail prices for crimes, and find out how bail can be lowered.

Key demographic data based on Census for Harris County, GA. Much of this information can be useful for bail bondsmen who are prospecting the county as a possibility to start a bail bonds business. Education, income, and employment statistics are vital in assessing the overall risk of a population when it comes to lending money for bail. Median home values are useful to determine collateral for property bail bonds.

Unemployment data is based on Bureau of Labor statistics. Employment status is the single most important piece of information that bail bondsmen consider when deciding to bail someone out of jail. Having a job and an active income stream is the single most impactful reassurance bondsmen can have.

Property bonds are a good way of making bail if an individual has equity in their property but very little or no cash. By looking at the median home values in Harris County, GA, we can roughly estimate the asset potential the county’s residents have.

We pride ourselves on our reader focused approach, which includes providing information on resources that may be useful.

It’s generally a good idea to get in touch with a lawyer to seek assistance for the trial, fair sentencing, and even to challenge the bail amount that is being set for the person you are looking to release from jail. Particularly when cash bail is set, it’s important that bail is set fairly, which is an area where a lawyer can assist.

If you need free or low-income legal help, you may qualify for assistance from the American Bar Association.

One of the shortcomings of the bail system is the time someone can be stuck in jail – it’s often enough time for a person to lose their job. To make matters worse, having a tarnished record further complicates matters. This is why we are listing reputable job centers near Harris County, GA to help get people back on their feet.