Penal Code 242

If a person is arrested for a violation of penal code 242, the person is arrested for misdemeanor battery. The offense comes with a $5,000 bail, which is determined by the bail schedule that all counties across the state of California use for bail. The defendant may also be held in jail for six hours and issued a citation.

When the defendant is given the opportunity to pay bail in exchange for his or her release from jail, the defendant may need financial assistance to help pay that bail amount. As such, the defendant has a right to work with a bail bonding agency. A bail bonding agency will provide the funds that are necessary to secure the release of the defendant. In exchange, the defendant will pay a fee to the bail bonding agency and provide the agency with collateral that the agency can hold onto while the defendant awaits trial.
The fee that the agency charges may vary by agency, but in general, each bail bonding agency charges about ten percent of the total amount of bail. For violation of penal code 242, the bail would be $5,000, so the defendant can expect to have to pay $500. This fee may be payable by cash, check, credit card, or by working out a payment plan with the bail bonding agency.

As long as the defendant goes to all of his or her court appearances, the payee of the bail bond will receive a refund of the bail. However, if the defendant fails to go to court, the bail bonding company will likely take possession of assets that the defendant had ear-marked for such an occasion. The bail bonding agency will also probably hire a bounty hunter to track down the defendant in order to rearrest the defendant and return him or her to court.