Bail Bonds in Lancaster County, SC – Ultimate Guide! Find Bondsmen, How Bail Works, Bail Costs

To better understand how bail bonds work in South Carolina, upon arrest a person must first be processed at the local county jail. To be released from jail, a few steps must occur, including being booked and posting bail.

Once the bail amount is confirmed, you have a few bail options you can consider in South Carolina. If the arrest was for a minor misdemeanor charge, you may be able to cover the entire bail amount in cash yourself. The judge may also release you under Own Recognizance (OR) which is typically used on smaller crimes committed where the judge has strong confidence that you will show up to court. If it's a felony charge or you have a higher bail bond set due to a prior history of not appearing in court, you may need to use a bail bondsman. If you don't agree with the bail amount, you can wait for the bail hearing which typically happens within 24 hours of arrest in South Carolina.

If you choose to use a bail bond agent, they can be sent to post the bail bond at the local jail. Then, the release procedure begins and typically takes anywhere from 1 to 2 hours to be completed. 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.

In South Carolina, bail bond fees are set by the SC Department of Insurance, and will cost you no less than $25 and cannot exceed 15% of the total bail bond amount . With competition between bondsmen, most will charge around 10% but their official cap is at 15% of the total. You will not be able to get this money back from a bail bondsman.

Do your due diligence by contacting multiple bondsmen in South Carolina to see what rates they offer. You will need to provide you background, criminal history, and answer any questions that may help the bondsman determine your flight risk. It's possible to negotiate a lower bail bond fee in some cases.

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 Lancaster County, SC. Data is based on FBI crime statistics database.

We provide estimates on average bail prices for different misdemeanor and felony crimes in Lancaster County, SC. 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 Lancaster County, SC. 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 Lancaster County, SC, 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 Lancaster County, SC to help get people back on their feet.