Bail Bonds in Maricopa County, AZ – Ultimate Guide! Find Bondsmen, How Bail Works, Bail Costs

To better understand how bail bonds work in Arizona, it's important to know what bail options you have and what to expect while in jail. Upon arrest anywhere in the state of Arizona, a person is usually processed at the local county jail. To be released from jail, a few steps must occur, including being booked into jail and posting bail. Once the bail amount is decided, a bail bonds agent can be called to post the bond at the local jail. Using the service of a bail bondsman typically requires collateral and someone to co-sign on the bail bond. Release from jail can typically take anywhere from one to two hours to be completed.

In addition to using a bail bondsman for a fee, there are a few other bail options that should be considered in Arizona:

• Own Recognizance Release in Arizona - 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 Arizona 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 Arizona's court will give you back the full bail amount minus any administrative fees upon completion of court dates. Be aware that your money will be held up with the court until your case is complete.
• Arizona Pre-Trial Services - The judge may release you on pre-trial services terms. This means you do not have to pay a bail amount to be freed from jail, but the judge will put other stipulations into place, such as GPS tracking, drug testing, a rehab program, or other requirements.
• Third-Party Release in Arizona - For low level offenses and cases where an individual has a reasonably clean record, the judge may release the arrested person to a Third Party, such as a loved one who can help monitor the person and help ensure they appear for all court cases. This person is held accountable for the released person and there needs to be a high level of confidence that this is the right path.

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.

Arizona requires a 10% bail bond fee for all bail written by a bondsman, as defined by the Department of Insurance. You can sometimes find a special exception where the cost of the bail bond is only 8% but those cases are rare and only under certain circumstances.

The good news is that Arizona has put a new law in place as of April 2017 where low-income people can be given a discount or even have their bail fee waived completely. This is only for low income and low level crimes.

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 Maricopa County, AZ. Data is based on FBI crime statistics database.

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