Health and Safety Code 11379

If a person arrested for the violation of the Health and Safety Code 11550, the person is guilty (or accused) of using, being under the influence of, or being addicted to the use of narcotics. This offense is classified as a misdemeanor and has a $15,000 assumptive bail.

When bail is set for an individual, the bail is the amount of money that it will take in order to get the defendant out of jail while he or she awaits trial. Bail is not set in some cases where a judge has reason to believe that the defendant may pose a harm to society. In other cases, a pretrial representative may decide that the defendant can leave jail on his or her own recognizance, meaning that the person can leave jail without having to post bail.

The assumptive bail amount is going to be the same throughout all counties in California. The major difference between one case to the next has to do with other violations that the defendant is being held on. For example, if the defendant is being held only on drug use, then the bail may be only $15,000. However, if the person has also been arrested for disorderly conduct or drug possession, then the bail amount could be set higher.

When a defendant cannot pay the full bail amount on his or her own, the defendant may choose to stay in jail pending the trial. However, the defendant may also approach a bail bonding agent for help posting the bail. The bail bonding agent will pay the full amount of the bail bond to the court. In turn, the defendant will pay a down payment to the bail bondsman. The down payment is usually about ten percent of the total cost of the bail bond.

When a defendant shows up to court to stand trial for the crime that he or she has been accused of committing, the bail bond money will be returned to the bail bondsman. However, the bail bondsman will not return the down payment to the defendant. Thus, the defendant and any persons helping the defendant post bond should recognize that the bond money will not be returned even if he or she goes to court for trial.