Cash bail in Vermont is either a secured amount of money or actual money that must be paid to allow a criminal defendant to be released from jail while awaiting trial.
A bail bond is money or some form of property that is deposited to the court by the suspect, in return for the release from pre-trial detention. If the suspect does not return to court, the bail is forfeited, and the suspect may possibly be brought up on charges of the crime of failure to appear. If the suspect returns to make all their required appearances, bail is returned after the trial is concluded.
A bail bondsman is someone who is hired to put up the money or collateral to ensure a defendant’s appearance for a set fee. The fee is typically 10% of the total bail required in Vermont. In other words, if the Vermont Superior Court ordered that a person be held in jail until they paid $10,000 and the person or their family could not pay it, they could hire a bail bondsman for $1,000. The bail bondsman fee is not refundable. It’s the price that a defendant pays for the bail bondsman to put up the money for his release.
Bail can be a confusing concept if you are not familiar with the criminal justice system. Contact Burke Law today for a free consultation.
Vermont Supreme Court Justice Karen Carroll explained bail and release in Vermont well in this article when she was a Superior Court Judge sitting in Windham county.