Wait- My Son was Arrested in Conshocken/Norristown/Skippack! How do I Bail Him Out?
I have written in the past about how to bail out a loved one in Philadelphia. But wait, you say- there are many places to get into trouble outside of South Street or Manayunk. There's an active nightlife across Montgomery County- from Conshohocken to Skippack, with Norristown and Pottstown in between. So how do you post bail for a loved one in Montco?
The short answer is that you go to the county prison in Eagleville to post the bail, and your loved one will be released to you there. If, however, bail is too high for you to post, your first stop will be a bail bondsman, who will then post the bail at the county prison for you.
A preliminary arraignment happens much faster in Montgomery County then it does in Philadelphia (mainly due to the organization of the criminal justice system by each small municipality), and so you usually won't have time to drive to whatever police station before the arraignment occurs and your child is transported to the county prison. Therefore, you will have to post bail at the county prison, a facility formally known as the Montgomery County Correctional Facility, and informally known as Eagleville, after its location.
Another major difference between bail in Montgomery County and in bail in Philadelphia, is that, at least at the preliminary arraignment, bail in Montgomery County is often set as "straight bail" or "cash" ("STBL" on the docket sheet). This means that a person has to post the entire amount of the bail in order to be released. In Philadelphia, only 10% has to be put down.
So what to do if your son is initially charged with an aggravated assault after a bar fight, and bail is set at $150,000? You call a private businessman called a bail bondsman, and pay them a percentage of the bail. This is usually 8-10% of the bail depending on the circumstances. Based on this payment, which is non-refundable, and a stack of paperwork you fill out, the bondsman will then go and post the full amount of the bail with the county. Your child will then be released from prison.
Any criminal defense attorney worth their salt already has a relationship with a particular bail bondsman, which should make the process smoother.
