Have you been woken up in the middle of the night by a phone call from a family member or friend, asking you to help bail them out of jail? If so, there’s a good chance that that person was arrested for a felony. And, since you do want to help, you immediately jump on the Internet in search of a bonds office that issues felony bail bonds in Angleton.
A felony is a crime that may be punishable by a sentence of more than one year in a state or federal prison. Felonies are serious crimes that include violent, property, drug, and weapon offenses such as robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, fraud and forgery. The felony classification, arrest process, sentencing and victim restitution for these types of crimes are generally the same throughout the United States, but check the laws in your state because felony crimes differ individually.
So, how do you choose the right bail bonds company for a family member or friend with a felony charge against them? These days it’s as easy as jumping online and plugging several keywords into a search engine, but there are some important things to look for that are specific to the legal world.
Here are a few tips to help you find a felony bail bonds issuer in Angleton:
- Once you are on the homepage of a bail company, see if they offer bail bonds services for felonies. If they don’t, cross them off your list and move on.
- Check to see that the company has a valid license to be a bail bondsman. You can do this for the state of Texas by going to the Texas Department of Insurance website or contacting them directly.
- Does the company’s address and phone number exist? You don’t want to get in a pickle by inadvertently hiring a fake or bad bail bonds company and having your money stolen. If a license number is posted on their website, run it through the Texas Department of Insurance website, or run the physical address.
- If the company is true and you think you may want to use them for a bond, start by asking them a lot of questions to make sure they are the right company for you. Even though you may be stressed and in a hurry to find a bondsman, do not rush. They will be assisting you through the entire bail process, so you have to feel comfortable with a company or individual.
Now that you’ve selected a bail bonds company in Angleton that has felony services—one that feels right for you—that company will explain everything you should expect and need to do. This will include all paperwork, rates and payments and whatever happens next. Remember, don’t sign any pages of an agreement until you fully understand what it is exactly that you are signing!