If you've ever been charged and arrested for a crime in Dallas, you know how time-consuming—and expensive—it is. This is especially true in Dallas and Collin County, where there are hundreds of inmates detained in jail for long periods of time—even for small crimes. In fact, according to a national survey, 70% of inmates detained in United States jails have not been convicted of a crime. While this is largely due to affordability and expensive bail bonds, there's another factor many forget. Many inmates end up staying in jail for long periods of time because of slow paperwork. While a small amount of this is due to understaffing, the main reason for slow paperwork is the bail bonds companies themselves.

After being arrested in Dallas County, inmates most likely go to the Dallas County Jail. Of course, this depends on the nature of the crime and the criminal themselves. Even paperwork for the smallest of crimes—involving jail time—can take too long for most bail bondsmen. A class A misdemeanor (the most severe of low crimes) results in up to one year in jail. While misdemeanors may be seem easy to process, for many bail bondsmen, they're not.

Don't Wait in Jail

However, people arrested for a crime don't have to wait in jail at all. Doc's Bail Bonds is not only open 24/7, but is the fastest bail bondsmen in Dallas County. While many think getting a bail bond is all about the money, they forget about how crucial the time factor is. Below are three basic reasons why time-sensitivity is the most important feature in a bail bonds company:

Picked up on a criminal charge in the city of Wylie? The first course of action will be to make sure you're properly 'booked' (i.e., fingerprinted, photographed, charged, etc.). From there, it becomes a guessing game as to whether you'll be granted bail or what the amount of your bond will be. The next step rests squarely in the hands of the city's magistrate judge. He or she will hold a formal hearing. Here's what you can expect.  

What You Need to Know About the Wylie Municipal Court

The Wylie Municipal Court is where most hearings will take place. If it's a less serious (class C misdemeanor) crime, then you'll likely be staying in the Wylie City Jail. Otherwise, you'll be held for a maximum of 72 hours and either released or transferred to the Collin County Detention Center. Within 24 hours of booking, however, the judge has a decision to make. And that's where the magistrate's hearing comes into play.

What the Magistrate Will Determine

The Magistrate Judge will expect you to be on your best behavior and adhere to the court's rules of etiquette, which are available at this link. Some examples:

The Richardson Jail is located at 140 North Greenville Ave. If you end up here, one of two things will happen. You'll stay for the entire duration of your arrest and/or bonding period (class C misdemeanors only), or you'll be transferred to a county holding facility until those determinations can be made.

But what goes into determining your bond eligibility, and what should you do when/if bail is set? In the following article, we'll be examining the answers to these questions so if you or someone you love should ever need the 411 you'll have it. Let's go.

Key Stats About the Richardson Jail Facility

The Richardson Jail is located in the same area as the city's police department. Holding periods are short-term. They're not equipped to hold inmates for longer than 72 hours. To help speed along the process, the RPD will book you and set up an arraignment date at the municipal court nearby.

The North Texas city of Plano is one of the larger suburbs in the DFW Metroplex. Located just 20 miles north of downtown Dallas, it can sort of blend in. That can cause a degree of confusion if you get a call from your loved one telling you they've been arrested.

You probably think your loved one will know what your next steps to help them should be. But unless they're a veteran at being incarcerated, that's unlikely. Jurisdiction can be a confusing thing, so we've put together a handy-dandy blog post to help out. Here's what you can do to find out if your loved one is in the Plano City Jail as well as what you should do about getting them out.

What You Need to Know About the Plano Jail

Despite the city's substantial size, the city jail is just a short-term detention center. You're not meant to be here for any longer than 72 hours, regardless of the crime. If your loved one has been picked up for something like small-scale theft (less than $50, a class C misdemeanor), then they'll be staying here for the duration until bonded out or a hearing date can be set.

Northlake is a nicely-kept secret in Denton County. Located just northwest of Grapevine Lake, it's a quiet place with less than 2,000 people and beautiful scenery. Nevertheless, it's not completely trouble-free, and if you find yourself in the middle of it, you may need a bail bondsman to help take care of the problem.

Chances are you know how it works if you live here. But when you're trying to help a loved one who's been incarcerated from out-of-town or out-of-state, you may not know how everything works. In the following article, we'll be shedding light on it.

Northlake Bail Bondsmen Are Few and Far Between

Given the small size of Northlake, many bail bondsmen don't bother providing service there. Most of the action is in the metropolitan areas, so that's where they turn. We look at it a little differently here at Doc's. People everywhere need a helping hand, especially when they've been charged with a crime (either justly or unjustly).

Lewisville is a town of about 105,000 in the DFW Metroplex. Like many of the suburban communities in the area, it houses a city jail designed for short-term incarceration. If you are charged with a crime, you can expect to stay from 1-3 days before you're either released on your own recognizance or transferred to the Denton County Detention Center.

For most inmates, each day spent in jail is a day too long. It's the Doc's mission to help you limit your time away from family, work, and other obligations. So, if you need bail services at either detention facility, here's how to go about getting it.

Collect the Necessary Information

Doc's Bail Bonds is a company with a long history of being able to navigate the bail bond system. That said, you'll save yourself a lot of time and trouble if you have certain information available ahead of time. Here's what we're looking for in order to expedite the request:

The Justin City Jail located at 415 North College Ave. is a part of the city's police department. It's not designed for long-term holding, but it can still be a tough way to spend a night. If you have been picked up on charges, you want to spend as little time there as possible. But many are intimidated by the bail bond process because they're not sure of how it works and big numbers are thrown around when discussing costs.

In the following article, we're going to pull back the curtain on what you can expect to pay, particularly regarding felony charges. But first...

How Justin Deals with Felonies

If you have been picked up on a felony charge, don't expect to spend very long at the Justin City Jail. It's a three-day max 'vacation.' Except it's not a vacation. It's a high-security facility as the JPD keeps it fully staffed at all times. You'll be held there for as long as it takes to get a release on your own recognizance or to post bond. If you can't afford to post bond and you're unwilling to hire a bail bondsman, then your next stop is the Denton County Detention Center.

The city of Aubrey is home to just under 3,000. As such, it's the type of place where you can get around quickly. That fast pace carries over into the bail bond system. If you have been picked up and charged with a crime, you can expect a short stay before being shipped off to the county detention center or released on your own recognizance.

Either way, one day inside of a city jail is too many. And the faster you can get the paperwork filled out and the bond paid, the better.

A Matter of Minutes

So just how long does it take to bail your loved one out of city jail (or get yourself bailed out)? The answer varies, but it depends largely on how quickly you can reach out to the Doc. At Doc's Bail Bonds, we are equipped to pursue a speedy release through a combination of knowing the bail system and having an extensive network within the law enforcement community.

The Allen Police Department handles all crime committed within the city limits, but that doesn't mean you'll end up staying at the city jail. Your ultimate 'resting place' is going to depend on the crime you've committed, the length of your stay as determined by a judge, and your ability to pay the bond.

But it all starts with the booking process. In the following article, we'll address what you can expect if you're unfortunate enough to get arrested and charged with a crime. Let's boogie.

What You Need to Know About the Allen Jail

Allen is not a terrifically huge city. The population is around 85,000. People formally charged have two choices as far as places to stay are concerned, and neither of them is particularly charitable. The first is the city jail itself, housed at the same location as the police department. The address is 205 West McDermott. You'll be here for about three days for a class C misdemeanor. After that, you'll either be released or transferred to the Collin County Detention Center.

There are competing views bail reform in the state of Texas. Gov. Greg Abbott recently threw his support behind the Damon Allen Act, named for the Texas Department of Public Safety State Trooper, who was killed in the line of duty in November 2017.

Abbott's support for the bail reform measure states a goal of keeping the most violent felons from being released. But critics have argued it could go too far and end up keeping nonviolent persons in jail longer than the current system. 

While considerations are still underway — you can read more about the Abbott measure here — it highlights a growing desire to see the process changed. This desire stems from some in our industry who work to take advantage of underprivileged individuals who find themselves under arrest and facing charges. 

In 2002, Ru-El Sailor was convicted of murdering Omar Clark. Sailor allegedly shot Clark to death. His sentence: 25 years to life in prison. Thankfully, the Ohio Innocence Project — through mountains of research, evidence, and testimonies — were able to connect the dots and prove Sailor innocent beyond a shadow of a doubt.

Stories like Sailor's are all too common in the justice system. You might dismiss them as rare, but you could probably do a Google News search every week and find a newly-unearthed example or two. 

When Wrongfully Accused, It's a Societal Problem

It's easy to dismiss stories like Sailor's with a cavalier attitude. We convince ourselves that, while he may not have been guilty of that crime, he had to have been guilty of something to be close enough to the heat where police could pin it on him. 

Never mind there are countless cases of mistaken identity that end with horrific convictions and years-long stays in a state penitentiary. This type of attitude is not one that belongs in a civilized society. If you're innocent of a crime, you should not be doing the time. And if you are doing the time, that means someone else is getting away with something. 

POSS CS PG 2 >= 1G<4GBond Amount: $75000; Bond No.: Kaufman Bond Height: 6'; 180 LbsRace: White; Brown Hair, EyesDate of Birth: October 25, 1985; Age: 32

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The bail amount a judge will set for a defendant can seem like an arbitrary number, but there is a certain logic to it. Courts are known to base the amount on three factors: 

• The severity of the crime of which the defendant is accused
• Flight risk of the defendant
• The danger of the defendant to themselves and/or others

While these factors hold true, there is another factor that weighs in thanks to the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution, which dictates courts must not set excessive bail. As such, the financial means of the accused must weigh in at some point. 

What Is Excessive Bail? 

Unfortunately, 'excessive bail' is about as descriptive as the Eighth Amendment gets. Courts have worked through case law to bring the meaning a little more into focus. Basically, excessive bail is anything so high there's little chance the accused can actually pay it. 

Posting bail when under arrest for a serious offense can seem staggering. Depending on the charges, the amount can run into many thousands — even hundreds of thousands — of dollars. 

But some of the hesitation to post bail emanates from not fully knowing how the process works. When a bond is set at $500,000, for instance, posting places one on the hook for just 10 percent of the total. 

From there, it's up to the accused to make the court date to ensure the full amount of the bond isn't triggered. Of course, $50,000 is still a lot of money, and numbers like that could discourage doing anything at all. But that, too, can be a serious mistake. In the following article, we'll show you how by examining some of the unintended consequences. Let's begin. 

No-showing a court date creates a nightmare scenario for more than just the accused. The most obvious problem to arise is the money issue, but it goes well beyond that. In the following article, we'll be discussing all the ways that failure to appear can ruin your life and relationships. Let's begin. 

Friends and Family

Many times, people accused of serious crimes rely on friends and family to post the 10 percent required for bonding out. That means if your bail bond is set at $25,000, a loved one put up $2,500 on your behalf, provided you were unable to pay for it yourself. 

No-showing your court date means they lose their money and the full amount of the bond is due. Beyond the obvious financial impact of that, you've likely lost a friend or family member you could count on to be there for you during troubled times. 

In the US, judges usually prefer granting bail to keep with the code of law one is innocent until proven guilty. But that doesn't always mean it's a slam dunk. Sometimes the circumstances of a crime or the circumstances of the accused's life can lead to higher bail amounts or flat-out denial. 

Repeat offenders are particularly susceptible to the more stringent rulings. But what exactly does the court look for when making these determinations? In the following article, we'll be discussing considerations for when it isn't your first offense. Let's begin. 

A History of Offending

When you have more than one arrest on your record, it automatically increases the odds that you won't be granted bail or that the amount set will be so high you can't even afford the 10 percent bond-posting fee that most bondsmen require. That said, there are plenty of cases where your past doesn't factor in. For instance, if you have a record but it isn't one filled with serious or violent felonies, then the court likely will treat your current charge as a first offense. 

Bail bonds are not an exact science. Depending on the charge you face, it can be anywhere from minuscule to too-expensive-to-afford even by the 10 percent posting standards. 

Sexual assault is one of the more serious charges that will give a judge pause before he decides a case is bond-eligible. While a recent sexual assault bail amount in Spain was set at the U.S. equivalent of just $7,000, our country — and especially, the state of Texas — takes the charge more serious. 

Even so, there are a variety of factors in play before a final amount can be determined (or if the case will be bail-eligible at all). Let's have a look at each one.

The ability to get out of jail when arrested is the only one that matters when you are faced with incarceration. If you're new to it, all you can think about is how you don't belong. How all the obligations of home and work are going unchecked.

You're not even thinking about a legal strategy. Only how your life might be falling apart without you. Fortunately, there are several ways you can get out of jail. Here are the most common:

1. You Are Released Without Bail

For light misdemeanors, particularly first-time offenses, it's not uncommon for a judge to allow your release without setting bail. Generally, the crime you committed must be non-violent, and you should be relatively stable in your home and professional life. Don't expect this outcome if your offense put others in danger.

A lot rides on the mandatory court appearance following an arrest and subsequent bail. From the perspective of the accused, no-shows can create a lot of problems legally, financially, and personally. If you do manage to post bail, here's what is at stake should you fail to comply with the hearing date.

Personal Relationships

Many times individuals who post bail are unable to do so without help from a friend or family member. Failure to show for a hearing can result in forfeiture of the bond, which means your friend or loved one loses their money, and a warrant is placed for your arrest. We'll get into the forfeiture and arrest aspects in a moment, but for now, let the personal aspect resonate.

Betraying a loved one in such a manner can create future problems, especially considering the high rate of recidivism. According to the National Institute of Justice, more than three-fourths of individuals arrested for a crime are rearrested within five years of release. Failure to show up will ensure that person is only there for you once.

The cost of bail can seem staggering if you don't know how the system works. And truthfully, it could be. Bail costs are set by the court, and they're contingent on the nature of the crime as well as the suspect's probability as a flight risk.

If you have exhibited a history of criminal activity, that could give judges pause to grant any bail whatsoever. A best-case scenario would mean bail that's higher than normal.

On the flip side, if you're accused of an isolated offense and your record is otherwise spotless with a stable work history, bail is more likely to be granted. However, the nature of the crime (murder, for instance) could result in a rather large sum.