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Criminal Defense Articles

• OVERVIEW OF NEW JERSEY'S MEDICAL MARIJUANA/POT LAW
• CRIMINAL LAWYER IN BERGEN AND PASSAIC COUNTIES: BAIL FORFEITURE AND THE BAIL REMITTITUR GUIDELINES
• CRIMINAL LAWYER IN BERGEN AND PASSAIC COUNTIES: BAIL FORFEITURE AND THE BAIL REMITTUR GUIDELINES
• CRIMINAL LAW IN BERGEN AND PASSAIC COUNTIES: THE DYING DECLARATION EXCEPTION TO THE HEARSAY RULE

The Right to Bail in Jersey: Bail Options and Other Related Issues (4 of 4)

C. Bail Forfeiture

If an accused fails to appear at a scheduled court date or otherwise violates a condition of bail, the court can revoke and forfeit the bail. As a result of the revocation, the accused will be remanded to jail and the bail, subject of the recognizance of bail, can be paid over to the government. Before a bail forfeiture can occur, the government must obtain a judgment against the defendant and surety. As explained above, the process has been rather streamlined because of the contractual responsibility required by the recognizance contract. In short, the notice of forfeiture, which can be served by merely notifying the accused and his/her sureties, simply states that the a judgment in the amount recited in the recognizance of bail will be entered absent a written objection. A forfeiture can be set aside for justifiable reasons, however. If the forfeiture is not set aside, the court can consider whether the forfeiture can be reduced or “remitted.” The party seeking to set aside or remit a forfeiture has the burden of proof and the standard is whether the interests of justice require the court to set aside the forfeiture or reduce the amount of the bail to be forfeited. Assessing whether or not a remittance is appropriate, the court should determine whether or not: (a) the applicant is a commercial bail bondsman, bail bondsman’s supervision; the bail bondsman’s effort to insure the return of the fugitive; (b) the time between the date of forfeiture and the date of default and the accused’s return date; (c) prejudice sustained by the government because of the accused’s absence; and (d) expenses in recapturing the accused. It has been said that the court’s primary focus in assessing a bail remission must be on the surety’s effort to secure the accused return.

As you can see, there are many issues associated with bail in a criminal case and most of them are complex. To insure success, it is important that you engage an experienced lawyer as soon as possible to help you navigate through these treacherous waters.

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