Bail Bonds in Shelby County, TN – Ultimate Guide! Find Bondsmen, How Bail Works, Bail Costs

Numerous Tennessee bail bondsmen can bail you out anytime during the day or night in Tennessee. At your request, many bail bond companies will come pick you up discreetly, and installment payment plans are usually available with bondsmen.

Before using a bail bondsman, you should know all bail options in Tennessee in order to be released from jail. Bail bondsmen will fall under surety, or bail bonds, where they will bail you out for a 10% fee. You cannot get this 10% fee back, no matter if you are guilty or not. It's the cost of using a bail bondsman and the risk they take. Using the service of a bail bondsman typically requires collateral and someone to co-sign on the bail bond.

To avoid the 10% fee, you can pay in cash but you have to pay the entire bail amount. The jail can also release you on Own Recognizance (OR) which is typically used on smaller crimes committed in Tennessee. The judge finds you low risk and has strong confidence that you will show up to court. There is no fee with Own Recognizance and you have no out of pocket cost to be released from a Tennessee jail. You can also be released from jail in Tennessee by using a Property Bond. You will need 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 Tennessee court will issue a warrant for your arrest and can take over your property.

Knowing your bail options helps you better understand how bail bonds work in Tennessee. The next step is to know what to expect upon arrest anywhere in the state of Tennessee. A person must be processed at the local county jail which means taking your mugshot and having your fingerprints taken. To be released from jail, a few steps must occur, including being booked and posting bail. When the bail bond amount is decided, you can pay the full amount or a bail bonds agent can post the bail bond at the local jail. Now the release process begins and typically takes anywhere from 1 to 2 hours to complete. Even though cash bonds are permitted, it is usually not frequently done due to financial limitations.

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.

Tennessee has a firm 10% bail bond fee that is charged for all bail bonds in the state (T.N.C 40-11-316). The court will also charge $37 in administrative costs so keep that in mind when thinking of the total out-of-pocket cost.

With the cost being set at 10% in Tennessee, you know that your fee will be the same no matter which bondsman you choose, however contact a few bail bondsman to see what type of rules they have in place upon release. Are there any other contractual rules outside of bail bond fees? For example, requirements on tracking devices, check-ins, travel rules outside of the state of Tennessee and any drug or alcohol tests. While these bail bond stipulations are not actual direct money costs, they do take up your time from school and work and increase your risk of not meeting your release obligations.

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 Shelby County, TN. Data is based on FBI crime statistics database.

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