Bailing out is the practical choice for families who can cover the premium and will attend every court date, because staying in custody means waiting at least until arraignment. Some arrests carry no bail, though, and Magistrate Review is not release. A defense attorney can advise on your case.
How long staying in custody lasts
Arraignment is the first court stop whether a family lets someone stay in jail or bail out, and custody means waiting for it. Under PC 825, a magistrate must see the person within 48 hours after arrest, and Sundays and holidays do not count. If the court is not in session when the hours expire, the deadline extends through its next session on the following judicial day. Someone arrested on a Wednesday after that day's session ends must appear by Friday, barring a court holiday.
Time in custody does not lower bail by itself. As a rule, a court order is what changes the amount. A person who cannot post it may wait for trial in custody unless a court orders release.
When bail may not apply at all
Some arrests carry no money bail, so no choice arises. Since October 1, 2023, the Los Angeles Superior Court's Pre-Arraignment Release Protocol has sorted eligible arrests under three labels. As a rule, Cite and Release and Book and Release send a person home on a promise to appear, with $0 bail. Charges on the PC 1270.1 list follow separate hearing rules. Booked on several charges, a person follows the strictest label, and any charge with a money amount outweighs a $0 label.
Magistrate Review is not release. A magistrate available around the clock can release the person, set no-money conditions, or hold the decision until arraignment when conditions cannot assure safety or a return to court. On a felony arrest, release comes without conditions if prosecutors file no charges before arraignment. Other counties, San Bernardino County included, set their own schedules.
The California Constitution adds narrow limits. A court may deny bail for capital crimes, violent or sexual-assault felonies, and felonies involving threats of great bodily harm, but only on the findings that article I, section 12 spells out.
What bailing out costs
Cost is the other half of the choice to stay in jail or bail out. A bond is a surety company's promise to cover bail, and the premium is its price. At the standard 10% filed rate, $12,000 bail means a $1,200 bail bond premium, paid instead of raising $12,000. A reduced filed rate, often 8%, may apply to qualifying clients.
As a rule the premium does not come back, even when prosecutors drop the case, though two surrender rules can change that. Our pay bail or bond answer explains both and the cash route.
The jail controls posting and release, so we never promise an hour. In our experience the wait for release runs 2 to 6 hours, and we start work when you call.
What you owe the court once out
Once you bail out of jail, staying out depends on the defendant attending each court date. Missing a date without a sufficient excuse can forfeit the bond. A felony defendant out on bail who willfully skips court to evade the process commits a new felony under PC 1320.5, with a fine up to $10,000, imprisonment, or both. Cosigners can be asked to repay a forfeited bond under the agreement they signed, as our cosigner guide explains.
How to weigh the choice
Five checks help a family judge whether a loved one should stay in jail or bail out: whether the charge carries money bail, whether the family can afford a premium, whether the person will make every court date, what a cosigner could owe after a missed date, and what a defense attorney advises.
Your defense attorney, or the public defender if you cannot afford one, can advise on the charge and any time spent in custody. We are a bail agency and cannot give legal advice.