Am I entitled to refund of bail if my son did not show up for his first court date but did show for his second?

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Am I entitled to refund of bail if my son did not show up for his first court date but did show for his second?

My son was arrested; I paid 10% of $5000 bail. He did not show up for court date and the bondsman charged my credit card for the full $5000. I called the court and they gave my son a new court date and said they were reinstating the bond. My son showed at the second court date and the charges were dismissed. The bondsman is telling me that I permanently forfeited the $5000 when my son did not appear at the first court hearing. Is there any way I can get my $5000 back?

Asked on January 6, 2011 under Criminal Law, New Jersey

Answers:

M.T.G., Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney

Answered 13 years ago | Contributor

You need to speak with an attorney in your state.  Did you have an attorney n the first Court state?  In New York if a person does not show up in court what generally happens is that their defense attorney asks the court to stay the bail bond until the date given for the person to appear (generally the next day).  If the defendant does not appear the next day then the Judge can order the bond forfeited.  Did the Judge stay the bod in this case ir was it ordered forfeited?  You need to find this out in order to figure out what to do next.  If the bond was not stayed or ordered forfeited the day he did not show up then you may be out of luck. 


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