§ 40-11-101. Short Title
Sections 40-11-101 — 40-11-144 shall be known as and may be cited as the “Release from Custody and Bail Reform Act of 1978.”
§ 40-11-102. Bailable Offenses
Before trial, all defendants shall be bailable by sufficient sureties, except for capital offenses where the proof is evident or the presumption great. After conviction, defendants are bailable as provided by § 40-11-113, § 40-11-143 or both.
§ 40-11-103. Methods of Release
Sections 40-11-101 — 40-11-144 shall be supplemental to the laws providing for and regulating professional bail bondsmen, who may continue to secure the bail bonds provided for in §§ 40-11-101 — 40-11-144, but only as provided for in § 40-11-122, and consistently with all other laws and regulations pertaining to those laws. Nothing in §§ […]
§ 40-11-104. Authority to Release Defendants
Any magistrate may release the defendant on the defendant’s own recognizance pursuant to § 40-11-115 or § 40-11-116 or admit the defendant to bail pursuant to § 40-11-117 or § 40-11-122 at any time prior to or at the time the defendant is bound over to the grand jury. The trial court may release the […]
§ 40-11-105. Right to Bail — Bail by Clerk — Maximum Amounts
When the defendant has been arrested or held to answer for any bailable offense, the defendant is entitled to be admitted to bail by the committing magistrate, by any judge of the circuit or criminal court, or by the clerk of any circuit or criminal court; provided, that if admitted to bail by the clerk […]
§ 40-11-106. Authority to Take Bail — Appeal
If bail has been set, any sheriff, any magistrate or other officer having authority to admit to bail in the county where the defendant is arrested, confined or legally surrendered may take bail in accordance with the provisions of §§ 40-11-101 — 40-11-144 and release the defendant to appear as directed by the officer setting […]
§ 40-11-107. Taking Bail Before Commitment
The committing magistrate or the city court clerk of any incorporated municipality or city or that person’s deputies, before whom a defendant is brought for examination on a warrant of arrest, are authorized to take bail, either for the defendant’s appearance for examination or for the defendant’s appearance at court to answer the charge.
§ 40-11-108. Taking Bail After Commitment
If the defendant is committed to jail in default of bail, the committing magistrate or sheriff or the city court clerk of any incorporated municipality or city or the person’s deputies may take bail at any time thereafter, for defendant’s appearance at the court having cognizance of the offense.
§ 40-11-109. Taking Bail After Indictment
After indictment, the sheriff, upon executing the capias or writ of arrest, may take bail from the defendant for the defendant’s appearance to answer the charge.
§ 40-11-110. Bail for Material Witness
If it appears by affidavit that the testimony of a person is material in any criminal proceeding and if it is shown that the witness has refused or will refuse to respond to process, the court may require the witness to give bail under § 40-11-117 or § 40-11-122 for appearance as a witness, in […]
§ 40-11-111. Bail for Persons Under Disability
Individuals who are unable to perform activities of daily living as the result of a severe and persistent mental illness, or individuals who have been adjudicated mentally incompetent, or infants, need not personally make the deposit or execute the bail bond as may be required under §§ 40-11-101 — 40-11-144, but the deposit and execution […]
§ 40-11-112. Arrest Warrant Issued for Failure to Comply With Conditions
Upon an increase in the amount of bail required or the defendant’s failure to comply with any condition of a bail bond or recognizance release, the court having jurisdiction at the time of the increase or failure shall declare a forfeiture and may issue a warrant for the arrest of the defendant.
§ 40-11-113. Admission to Bail Pending Appeal
In the cases in which the defendant may be admitted to bail upon appeal, the order admitting the defendant to bail may be made either by the court wherein the judgment was rendered, or the judge of the rendering court, by the court of criminal appeals, or any judge of the court of criminal appeals, […]
§ 40-11-114. Contents of Written Undertaking
Bail, when not given in open court, is given by a written undertaking, containing the conditions of release, the agreement of the defendant to appear in the court having jurisdiction of the offense as directed by the court and/or an amount to be paid for nonappearance, signed by the defendant, and if made under § […]
§ 40-11-115. Release on Recognizance or Unsecured Bond — Factors Considered
Any person charged with a bailable offense may, before a magistrate authorized to admit the person to bail, be ordered released pending trial on the person’s personal recognizance or upon the execution of an unsecured appearance bond in an amount specified by the magistrate. In determining whether or not a person shall be released as […]
§ 40-11-116. Conditions on Release
If a defendant does not qualify for a release upon recognizance under § 40-11-115, then the magistrate shall impose the least onerous conditions reasonably likely to assure the defendant’s appearance in court. If conditions on release are found necessary, the magistrate may impose one (1) or more of the following conditions: Release the defendant into […]
§ 40-11-117. Bail Security Required
Absent a showing that conditions on a release on recognizance will reasonably assure the appearance of the defendant as required, the magistrate shall, in lieu of the conditions of release set out in § 40-11-115 or § 40-11-116, require bail to be given.
§ 40-11-118. Execution and Deposit — Bail Set No Higher Than Necessary — Factors Considered — Bonds and Sureties
Any defendant for whom bail has been set may execute the bail bond and deposit with the clerk of the court before which the proceeding is pending a sum of money in cash equal to the amount of the bail. Upon depositing this sum, the defendant shall be released from custody subject to the conditions […]
§ 40-11-119. Return of Deposit to Defendant
If the conditions of the bail bond have been performed and the defendant has been discharged from all obligations in the cause, the clerk of the court shall return to the defendant, unless the court orders otherwise, the entire sum which had been deposited.
§ 40-11-120. Forfeiture of Defendant’s Bail Deposit
If the defendant released upon recognizance under § 40-11-115 or posting bail bond under § 40-11-118 does not comply with the conditions of the bail bond, the court having jurisdiction shall enter an order declaring the bail to be forfeited. Notice of the order or forfeiture shall be mailed forthwith by the clerk to the […]