“Bail Jumping” – Failing to Appear in Court After Posting Bail

After an arrest, a person is taken to the police station and is held in custody until they pay the bail or are released on their own recognizance. With bail, a person pays a certain amount of money (a collateral), so they can be released, but this serves as an agreement to return to court on a designated date to face their charges. When a person attends all the scheduled court dates, the bail is returned after deducting administrative costs. But what happens when a person does not attend the court date? This is known as “bail jumping”, or failure to appear in court

What happens if you fail to appear in court? 

After a person fails to attend the instructed court date, the prosecution will issue a warrant for arrest. Suppose the person facing charges does not show up in court in a reasonable time or fails to provide the court with a reason for their absence. In that case, the prosecution can file an additional charge against the defendant: Failure to Appear. This can add a misdemeanor or felony offense to the list of charges – which depends on the pending accusations. 

What happens to the defendant’s bail money after failing to appear in court?

Additionally, not showing up to a court appointment after posting bail results in the county keeping the bail money. Bails can reach six or seven figures depending on the offense and can be a substantial financial loss. 

What are your options after failing to appear in court?

The options include:

• Reporting to jail 
• Hiring an attorney to help you withdraw the failure to appear warrant and set a new court date.
• Hiring an attorney to help you file a motion to surrender in the courtroom (instead of jail) in order to avoid another round of arrest records, fingerprints, and mugshots.

If you have failed to appear in court, make sure to reach out to a criminal defense attorney in FL right away to figure out what your next steps need to be.