How paying bail and bond works in Harris County
What happens in probable cause court sets the pace of a criminal case, with Harris County magistrates setting bonds for dozens of defendants in one sitting.
The magistrate — an appointed lawyer rather than an elected official — hears fromthe District Attorney’s Office and Public Defender’s Office to determine how likely a defendant is to return to court and whether they present a danger to the community. Magistrates also review a defendant’s financial likelihood to make bail.
Elected judges sometimes play a role in bond later in the case, usually when defendants request lower bail because they cannot pay the higher amounts.
The words “bail” and “bond” are often used almost interchangeably, but they are not the same thing. Bail is the money a defendant must pay to get out of jail. A bond is posted on a defendant’s behalf to secure their release. Bail is not intended as a punishment in itself. It is a way of securing a defendant’s agreement to abide by conditions and return to court. If a defendant does not appear, the amount paid can be taken by the court and a warrant issued for arrest.
In Harris County, a defendant’s release has historically depended on whether they have the money to post bail. The right to non-excessive bail is guaranteed under the Eighth Amendment, and civil rights advocates brought the county’s felony and misdemeanor practices to federal court. The legal action culminated in the landmark misdemeanor bail reform settlement in 2019.
Court records show real-life examples of how bonds work.
Orellana Wilmer was granted a personal recognizance bond, or PR bond, in January 2020 following a felony drug possession charge — less than a gram of cocaine in this instance. He was released at no cost.
PR bonds are unsecured bonds that do not require a deposit on the face value of bail and defendants appear in court on their own word. Judges individually approve them for defendants they feel no security is necessary. The defendants do pay a smaller fee to be released, but they are only liable for the face value of bail if they do not follow their bond conditions.
General order bonds are similar to PR bonds, but they don’t require a fee for release. These were implemented through the misdemeanor bail reform settlement.
A surety bond is a secured form of bail. Police in 2015 arrested Jonathan Rawlins on an unauthorized use of a vehicle charge. A magistrate ordered him jailed on a $15,000 bond. He was freed after a nonrefundable 10 percent of that amount was paid to a bail bondsman — who gave the entire amount to the court.
If Rawlins had failed to appear in court, he would forfeit the money already paid and a warrant issued for his arrest.
Both Wilmer and Rawlins were on bond at the time of the murder offense they ultimately were charged with. Rawlins was convicted of murder in 2016, while Wilmer’s case is pending.
Judges have discretion on how much a defendant must pay to get out of jail, but they can deny only a small number of defendants — those charged with capital murder — the right to be free while awaiting trial.
Prosecutors, on occasion, request no bond for defendants who do not qualify under those criminal codes. The requests are generally denied or ignored.