WHAT IS A NO BOND ARREST WARRANT

You may Panic if you find out there's a warrant for your arrest and there's a no bond attached to it. No bond connected to a warrant simply means you need to appear before a judge before you can get a bond. I'll walk you through the steps you need to follow if this ever happens to you or someone you know.

I'm Andrew Williams. I'm a board certified criminal defense attorney with 30 years of trial experience.  I share my years of experience with you to help you better understand the law and maybe use it to your benefit.  I provide General practical legal information but the law may vary from one jurisdiction to another. So if you do have a legal problem make sure you consult an attorney in your area to properly advise you about the facts and circumstances of your particular case.

Receive a Warrant for your Arrest, Call Bondsman

So you get a warrant for your arrest and the first thing you do is call a bondsman and they tell you it's set at no bond. What do you do now? No bond means that you must appear before a judge before a bond is set. A no bond situation usually comes up if you're charged with domestic violence spousal abuse of some type of child abuse, and the judge won't set a bond until you appear before him. This is so he can impose certain conditions on your bond and he can make sure he's told you face to face and you understand it.

Hire an Experienced Criminal Defense Lawyer

If you find out you do have a warrant with a no bond attached to it you'll need to hire an experienced criminal defense lawyer to help you. Your lawyer is going to advise you to get in touch with a bondsman of your choice. Then the bondsman will contact the lawyer and the lawyer and the bondsman will work together to arrange for you to turn yourself into the court on a specific date. 

Pay Initial Fee to Bond Company

When you go to court your lawyer and the bondsman will go with you. You should also have a family member or friend go with you as well for moral support or to take care of any details that you may not be able to attend to while you're in court. You're going to pay the bond company an initial fee ahead of time to start preparing the paperwork and appear with you in court. You'll pay the remainder of the fee once the judge sets the bond. 

Appear in Court before a Judge

When you go to court your lawyer and the attorney for the state will see if they can agree on a bond amount.  If not then your lawyer and the prosecutor will approach the judge and each will make a brief argument as to what the appropriate Bond should be. Then the judge will set the bond and impose any other conditions the judge thinks appropriate. The conditions might be to refrain from going to or near a certain address contacting a certain person or remaining within a specific geographical area.  Now you must abide by these conditions to remain free on bond because if you don't the judge could revoke your bond and put you in jail while your case is pending.

Bond is Set, Pay Bondsman remaining Fee

Once the judge sets the bond the bondsman will collect the rest of his fee which always depends on the amount of the bond. The bondsman will also have a lot of the paperwork prepared already to expedite the process so you can get out faster.

Goto Jail Division of Sheriff's Department

When you leave court you'll need to go to the jail division of the sheriff's department there they're going to fingerprint you photograph you and take down your personal information address and phone number and things like that. 

Free to Go Home

Once this is all done you're free to go home. From there you can begin the process of preparing your defense with your attorney and you can do it from home instead of sitting in jail.

There you have it it's a bit condensed but these are the steps that you need to follow if this ever happens to you or someone you know.  I hope this information was helpful.

Author: Andrew Williams

I am a criminal defense lawyer with over 30 years experience defending people accused of wrongdoing. I am board certified by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. Only ten percent of attorneys in Texas are board certified in their respective field. I practice criminal law exclusively in both state and federal court including appeals of criminal cases.