The Bail Industry Gets Political

NAME: Laura Beckett-White

CANDIDATE FOR: Cabell County magistrate

PARTY: Democrat

STATEMENT: "It is time for change in the magistrate court system. The residents of Cabell County deserve educated, experienced, and qualified magistrates to serve them. As magistrate I will work hard to serve the public to the best of my ability using honesty and fairness. I will work together with law enforcement, and other agencies within the criminal justice system, in an effort to decrease crime in this county."

QUESTION & ANSWER: Do you support the continued use of bail bondsmen in Cabell County?

"Bail bondsmen are used at the discretion of the offender. Although I believe that bail bondsmen are a cost effective way of reducing regional jail costs, I think that bail bondsmen need to be approved by county officials and supervised in order to ensure efficiency."

Dr. Phil in Bondsman Controversy

Mercades Nichols, one of eight teens charged in the brutal attack which was captured on a YouTube video, was bailed out by a representative of the show on Friday night, according to a report from MyFOXTampaBay.com.

A judge on Friday set bails ranging from $30,000 to $37,000 for the teenagers.

The Dr. Phil representative was waiting by the jail's exit, and when Nichols walked out, he tried to block Tampa TV station camera people from getting video of Nichols and her family leaving jail.

Police: NY Man Tries Bogus Bill for Bail

Police say it was no surprise a bogus $50 bill got a Long Island man arrested: He was trying to use it to pay his bail on a traffic charge.

The transaction compounded Cyheam Forney's legal problems and landed him in jail.

Arizona Tightens Policies On Illegal Immigrants

As it has become the favorite entry point for undocumented migrants trying to sneak into the United States, Arizona has become a laboratory for whether a state can single-handedly combat illegal immigration.

In recent years it has barred illegal immigrants from receiving government services, from winning punitive damages in lawsuits and from posting bail for serious crimes. A new state law shuts down businesses that hire illegal workers. And the sheriff of Maricopa County, which includes Phoenix and three-fifths of the state's population, dispatches his deputies and volunteer "posses" to search for illegal street vendors or immigrants being smuggled through the county.

"What I love about what Arizona is doing is we don't have to rely on the federal government," said state Rep. Russell Pearce, a Mesa Republican who has authored most of the toughest measures. "It has truly woken up the rest of America that states can fix that problem."

The campaign has had an effect: Illegal immigrants complain it's impossible to find good work and are leaving the state.

It has also taken a toll on some U.S. citizens.

Juan Carlos Ochoa, a naturalized U.S. citizen who lives in an upper-middle-class subdivision near Phoenix named Laguna Hills, can't find a job because a government database classifies him as a possible illegal immigrant. Pauline Muñoz, a 39-year-old mother of six who was born in Phoenix, has been afraid to leave her apartment since being held by sheriff's deputies for 15 hours for a driving infraction -- an example of what she believes is racial profiling.

And businesses that cater to immigrants both legal and illegal report a huge drop in sales, increasing the drag on the state's already troubled economy.

"There used to be so many people they would fight for parking out there," said Omar Flores, 31, manager of La Mexicana market in western Phoenix. Now the grocery store is mostly empty.

Economist Dawn McLaren of Arizona State University said that part of what's pushing immigrants out is the collapse of the state's housing-based economy. In the construction sector, which employs many immigrants, 10% of jobs have vanished over the last year as home prices have plunged.

The economic woes are magnified by the employer sanctions law, which has led some businesses to say they won't expand in Arizona, McLaren said. "It exacerbates the downturn," she said.

No one knows how many immigrants have left the state, and the most recent government figures show Arizona growing robustly -- as of July, Maricopa was the fastest-growing county in the nation.

But enough immigrants have left that the government of Sonora, the Mexican state bordering Arizona, has complained about how many people have arrived on its doorstep.

Pearce says the overall effect has been undeniably positive for Arizona. "Smaller class sizes, shorter emergency room waits," he said. "Even if [illegal immigrants] are paying taxes -- and most of them aren't -- the cost to taxpayers is huge."

The biggest effect has come from the new employer sanctions law, which took effect in January.

The law is fairly straightforward.

Any business caught hiring illegal immigrants is put on probation. If it is caught doing the same thing again, the state revokes its business license.

The only defense for an employer is if it used E-Verify, a federal pilot project to allow businesses to confirm the legality of their laborers.

The law did what it was supposed to with Jorge Hernandez, a 32-year-old illegal immigrant from Mexico. He had been working in a Phoenix tire shop for years when in December his bosses told him they'd have to let him go because of the new law. Now he struggles to support his family by working as a day laborer and is thinking of leaving.

"I've been in Arizona for 11 years," he said. "This is the worst one. For those years I worked every day. I had money, I had a car."

Hernandez dreams of moving to New Mexico, where friends have told him the economy is stronger and sentiment against illegal immigrants weaker. "They don't have E-Verify there," he said in Spanish.

E-Verify has at least one significant flaw -- its treatment of naturalized U.S. citizens.

Between October 2006 and March 2007, about 3,200 foreign-born U.S. citizens were initially improperly disqualified from working by E-Verify. Their status was later corrected.

Because many did not register their citizenship with the Social Security Administration, they are often listed as possible illegal workers.

That's what apparently happened to Ochoa, 47, who became a citizen in 2000. He quit his job as a car salesman at the end of last year and got hired by a local Dodge dealership in February. Days later, his new employers called him with bad news -- E-Verify classified him as a possible illegal immigrant. He only had a couple of days to convince Social Security that he wasn't.

He had lost his naturalization certificate, so Ochoa took his U.S. passport, Social Security card, driver's license and Arizona voter identification card to the local Social Security office. He was told he'd have to request new papers from the Department of Homeland Security, which could take up to 10 months.

"I love this country, I'm happy in this country," said Ochoa, a father of two, who escaped eviction this month only because a church group paid his rent. "The guy who made this law, I don't know him. He's started destroying a lot of families."

Katherine Lotspeich, acting chief of the agency that runs E-Verify, said officials will introduce a number of changes, starting in May, to make it easier to fix the problems that Ochoa and other naturalized citizens have encountered.

"The last thing we want is to have people who are naturalized citizens deal with this cumbersome process" to get paperwork, Lotspeich said.

She added that Social Security should have accepted Ochoa's passport as proof of citizenship.

Local law enforcement efforts, meanwhile, have drawn complaints about racial profiling.

For the last two years, Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio has been testing how far a local law enforcement agency can go in combating illegal immigration. His deputies and trained volunteers have detained more than 1,000 illegal immigrants, many of whom were stopped for minor infractions and then asked about their immigration status. State legislators this month moved toward passing a law requiring all local police departments to start fighting illegal immigration.

"I believe that if you get tough," Arpaio said, illegal immigrants "will disappear."

Immigrant-rights groups and attorneys have complained that Arpaio's attack on illegal immigrants leads to Latinos constantly being asked about their citizenship status. Some cite Muñoz's case as an example of perils to Arpaio's approach.

Muñoz was held for 15 hours after being stopped on a speeding violation in Phoenix in December. Deputies discovered she did not have a driver's license. She was placed in a van with several arrested illegal immigrants, taken to jail and held for several hours of processing before a judge released her.

"It's only because of the way you look," Muñoz said. "Even though I'm from here, I don't feel safe to go out and do anything."

Sheriff's Capt. Paul Chagolla, a department spokesman, said Muñoz was detained for driving without a license. She was kept with the illegal immigrants because "when we run an operation we don't always have transport" for individual suspects, he said.

Arpaio said that there have been few specific complaints of profiling and that his deputies ask suspects about immigration status only when they see a possible crime committed.

He has no apologies for his tactics or their contribution to a flight of illegal immigrants from Arizona.

"The more who leave, the better," he said. "They shouldn't be here in the first place."

Bail Reduction Sparks Outcry

Dale E . Flow, charged in connection with a brutal parking lot beating that left a Hilton Head Island bartender severely injured, walked out of jail March 12 after his bail was reduced from $100,000 to $25,000.

The reduction meant that Flow had to pay only $2,500 -- the standard 10 percent required by bail bondsmen -- to be free pending his trial.

The victim's friends say the bond shouldn't have been lowered, but Flow's attorney said bail isn't meant to be punitive.

Flow, 32, of Rockingham, N.C., was charged with assault and battery with intent to kill,South Carolina's equivalent of an attempted murder charge, after the Feb. 22 incident outside the Lodge, a popular night-spot on the south end of Hilton Head.

Witnesses said victim Colin Spar was hit from behind and knocked unconscious while trying to break up a fight. They said he was then beaten with a heavy metal object, possibly a builder's level.

The beating sent Spar, 23, a 2002 graduate of Hilton Head Preparatory School, to the intensive care unit of Savannah's Memorial Health University Medical Center, where he remained for weeks with injuries that required several surgeries. Spar was released from the hospital more than two weeks ago, but still undergoes out-patient rehabilitation to regain the use of his right arm.

When setting bond, judges take several factors into consideration, such as the severity of the crime as well as the defendant's past criminal record and potential flight risk.

Flow's attorney, James Brown, Jr., said his client is not a flight risk because he is staying with his mother in greater Charleston, his hometown.

According to Brown's motion to reduce the bond, which was delivered to the Beaufort County Clerk of Court on March 4, Flow's only other known criminal charge was for public disorderly conduct. A spokesman for the Richmond County Sheriff's Office in North Carolina said Flow also had a speeding infraction.

Judge James Williams granted the reduction request.He did not return several calls seeking comment.

Pre-trial bonds are required by law to be reasonable. Beaufort County Sheriff P.J. Tanner said if a defendant is not a flight risk and does not present a danger to the community, the deciding judge may be "stuck between a rock and a hard spot."

However, "prosecution, in most cases, does chime in on what bond was set," Tanner said.

Prosecutor Alex Robinson could not be reached for comment and Duffie Stone, 14th Circuit Solicitor, declined to comment, his spokeswoman said.

Friends of the Spar family like Debbie DeAbate, who has known the injured man for about 10 years, are outraged by the bond reduction.

"$2,500 is almost like an insult." she said. "Colin has missed work and is trying hard to have a normal life again. That's worth more than $2,500."

The Spar family, meanwhile, has been focusing on Colin's recovery.

"My first priority is Colin getting better. Everything else is secondary for now," said Daniel Spar, Colin's father. "We'll let the system do its job."

Flow was indicted by a grand jury March 20. The next term of General Sessions court, where the case will be heard, starts Monday.

Dodge Bail Bonds

With his slicked-back gray hair and pastel suits, George Dodge looks more like Ben Matlock than Dog the Bounty Hunter, the muscled and tattooed bail bondsman-turned-reality TV star."That’s all movie stuff," Dodge said of the Honolulu-based show on A&E.

"It’s great for show, but it wouldn’t fare too well in the state of Missouri."

Dodge, who describes himself as "old school," operates differently than many people in the area bail bonding industry.

He doesn’t allow his agents to carry guns or Tasers, citing safety concerns. He said that’s one of the main reasons he has only gotten into two fights while collecting bounties in the past 26 years.

And Dodge is picky when it comes to selecting the clients and bonds he insures. He estimates his agents turn down three out of every five bonds that are requested.

"I’m old. I’m fat. I’m primed for a heart attack," Dodge said. "I don’t need all the adrenaline."

Dodge, who said he stopped hiring ex-convicts and snitches years ago, has a peculiar prerequisite when hiring new employees.

"I like to hire someone that’s a little greedy," he said. "Greed is going to make them kick their feet out at 2, 3 o’clock in the morning and write them bonds. A little greed kind of helps."

Dodge’s rules have served him well.

At 68, he is the oldest continually active bail bondsman in Boone County, having operated Dodge Bail Bonds since 1982. He now works out of his northeast Columbia home, taking calls on his cell phone at all hours of the night and sending his bonding agents all over Mid-Missouri.

At its height just three years ago, Dodge Bail Bonds employed 76 agents across the state, working in all of Missouri’s 114 counties. Now, Dodge said he has cut back. His son, Monty Dodge, moved to Rogers, Ark., and Dodge said he’s content to run a one-man operation, only taking the bonds and clients he wants. Now, Dodge Bail Bonds has some 20 agents who work Mid-Missouri. There are four agents, including Dodge, who work in Boone County.

But what Dodge - a former building contractor and Randolph County sheriff’s deputy - is maybe best known for among police, prosecutors, judges and suspected criminals he works with is being a straight shooter.

"I had a guy I arrested one time tell me that ‘They can take your money, take your life, but they can’t take your word away,’ " Dodge said. "That sort of stuck with me."

Dodge was born and raised in Moberly and attended Kirksville State Teachers College, now Truman State University, in the 1950s. A social science major, Dodge dropped out after his junior year when he realized a humanities degree wouldn’t "quite meet my expectations salary wise."

He then worked 15-plus years as a building contractor - before the housing market went south in the 1970s - followed by a nine-year stint as a sheriff’s deputy in Randolph County.

"Hell, I wasn’t doing much of anything except piddling with selling a house here and there," Dodge said. "And then I run into" former Sheriff Orville Price "and asked him if he needed to someone to work, and he said sure."

Dodge retired as a nighttime captain in 1982 at the insistence of his wife of 49 years, Ilene.

Once he left the sheriff’s department, his former co-workers poked fun at Dodge’s new line of work, he said. At the time, Dodge was one of only three general bail bondsmen in Boone County.

But his new job, he would tell his ex-colleagues, had its benefits. " ‘You boys get up at 2 o’clock, chase down a guy who wants to fight you. His girlfriend bites you, his parents cuss you out, his dog growls at you, and you don’t get paid a damn cent more for that because you work by the hour,’ " he said he told them. " ‘I get up at 2 o’clock and bail the old boy out, and he loves you. His girl hugs you, his parents shake your hand, his dog wags his tail at you, and I get paid extra.’ "

Dodge Bail Bonds has been a family affair - his two adult sons, 48-year-old Marty and 49-year-old Monty, and his wife all have worked as bonding agents for him at one time or another.

But Marty, who has his own excavation company in Hatton, wasn’t really "cut out" for the family business, Dodge said, and Monty recently moved with his wife and kids to Arkansas.

So in recent years, Dodge has branched out from the bail bonding business. He owns a title loan business with four locations in Mid-Missouri and several pasture farms in Callaway, Chariton, Cooper and Randolph counties.

For a short time, Dodge also was a newspaper publisher as part owner of the North County News-Leader, a weekly newspaper that serviced Centralia and northern Boone County.

It was a lofty venture, and Dodge admits he "didn’t know a thing about newspapers." The paper’s office closed in April 2002 - about two months shy of its one-year anniversary. The failed venture was just another testament to where Dodge’s strengths lie.

"It’s not all peaches and cream, like sheriffing, but some people are cut out for bonding, and I guess I’m one of them," he said.

Dodge is one of 139 active general bail bond agents in Missouri who oversee the state’s 858 active bonding agents, said Emily Kampeter, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Insurance.

Industry experts say agents are an odd mixture of career criminals and former law enforcement officers. In recent years, Dodge said, the bail bonding business has become increasingly competitive with agents "looking to make a quick buck."

The growth has created some substantial problems, especially for state regulators. Bail bonding agent applicants who have been convicted of a felony within the past 15 years are barred from receiving a license but, in years past, the state Department of Insurance has had some discretion in granting licenses to ex-convicts.

A change in state law in 2006 requires bail bond agents to submit fingerprints on all applications and renewals. State officials have tried unsuccessfully to regulate the bail bonding industry even further - including a failed attempt in the General Assembly last year to require all bail bonding agents to report a felony arrest within 10 days, Kampeter said.

"It’s not the intent of this administration to allow discretion regarding felony arrests," she said.

Jack Hastings, a 39-year-old former Ashland and Boonville police officer, works full time as the head of security at Stephens College and moonlights as a bail bondsman for Dodge. He said the bail bonding industry - including Boone County’s 28 active bail-bonding agencies - is rife with problems.

"When I interviewed, George came across as a really good guy who did everything by the book, which is different than what I’ve seen," said Hastings, who has worked with Dodge Bail Bonds for about 2½ years.

Hastings, who worked as a police officer for 13 years before becoming a bondsman, said he quickly learned one of the vital tricks of the trade from Dodge - a good bond is all about the co-signer.

"A good co-signer is someone who is either going to pay that bond if that person runs out or help us find him," Hastings said.

"One of the first questions I ask is, ‘Where do you work?’ If it’s a mother who says she’s worked at University Hospital for 10, 15 years, I think it’ll work. But if it’s a girlfriend who wants to get her boyfriend out of jail, and she works at Wendy’s - well, you and I both know she’s not going to be able to pay that bond."

Hastings, who said a good part-time agent can make upwards of $20,000 per year, said he goes to painstaking lengths to vet his bonds and, as an insurance policy against clients who fail to show up in court, takes 10 percent of his earnings and puts it in an escrow account for a rainy day.

Dodge, Hastings and other agents said they’ve built up their client base largely through word-of-mouth.

Rodney Kemp, the 37-year-old owner of MO Music Records, said Dodge is a helpful, friendly and, most importantly, honest bail bondsman.

"It ain’t just about the money with him," said Kemp, who has previous drug and assault convictions dating back to the early 1990s. "He’ll try to help you. Back in the day, I got into trouble, and I didn’t have a lot of people to show how to do things better, but George did."

But trust is a hard commodity among bonding agents these days, Dodge said. In light of a record-breaking $750,000 bond posted for murder suspect Kristopher Prince in September, the 13th Judicial Circuit, which includes Boone and Callaway counties, overhauled its bonding rules in January.

Under the new rules, the court performs a more thorough check on whether a bail bonding agency working on an inmate’s behalf has enough assets to post a surety bond. The circuit clerk’s office also requires administrators to be contacted if a bond of more than $250,000 is posted, and those bonds can only be posted between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

The bond for Prince, who is in custody at the Boone County Jail on charges of second-degree murder and three weapons offenses, was posted on a Sunday. Prince is accused of killing 17-year-old Teddarian Robinson in April.

As a result, Boone County Prosecuting Attorney Dan Knight has called for more cash-only bonds for criminal suspects arrested in connection with violent crimes. That has some bonding agents, such as Dodge and Hastings, worried.

"Things aren’t like they used to be," Dodge said. "It used to be a better business, but you’re not always going to make a ton of money."

Law Enforcement and Bail Bond Agents Innovative on the Job

Each episode seemingly showed a new way to combine a straw, toothpicks, a paper clip and a wad of gum: The task varied from story line to story line, but on the television show MacGyver, the hero always, somehow, created an ingenious tool and saved the day.

While law enforcement officers don't hit the streets with firearms fashioned from marbles and rubber bands, it turns out that they are surprisingly good at ad-libbing solutions to problems and finding good substitutes for gear that either doesn't exist or is unavailable for their use. Officers have been known to turn cell phones into recording devices, for instance, and to make zip ties into temporary handcuffs. One department even outfitted a hobbyist's remote-control mini-helicopter with a wireless camera to create an inexpensive yet functional piece of aerial surveillance equipment.

Darin Logue, an Officer.com writer and a special agent-investigator for the State of Missouri's Department of Social Services, says he understands.

"I'm a big advocate on using what you've got," Logue explains. "I am commissioned in a number of countries, with four to seven departments in each, [and] it is a lot of area to cover. A lot of the departments don't have the budgets to buy the expensive latest-and-greatest products so we have to improvise a lot of gear."
Benefits and limits

In fact, departmental budgets are a common obstacle to obtaining new technology and specifically designed equipment. With budgets becoming more and more constrained in today's high-technology, computers-for-everything day and age, law enforcement is increasingly forced — or inspired — to think creatively when it comes to getting the job done.

Jeff Barton, who has served as an officer and bondsman and is currently a director of surveillance for a Missouri-based casino, explains the fundamental problem that faces many cash-strapped agencies: If a department doesn't have the resources it needs, then it's limited as to what officers can do.

As a result, thrifty and resourceful officers, SWAT team members, and even bail bondsmen have developed creative new uses for existing law enforcement equipment. And one obvious benefit of that is financial in nature: the job gets done, and it gets done at less cost to the department.

In a budget-minded department the constant search for the appropriate tool — or its substitute — can yield unexpected benefits, including the development of an innovative procedure or an easier-to-use tool.

While imagination can be inspired by almost anything, an officer's resourcefulness is limited by the technology that's available and the task that is at hand. In addition, using a tool for something other than the purpose it was designed for can bring its own set of problems.

"I don't want to say that there is no liability in using something that may not be designed for a particular application," notes Logue. "There are certain liabilities, but it depends on what they are being used for."

As an example, Logue says that if an officer were to use a flashlight as a baton, the question could be raised in court as to what training he or she had received that concerned using flashlights as defensive weapons.

Another limitation to on-the-job ingenuity can be the simple cost of the created device, which may be prohibitive, or the fact that the department cannot pay for it.

"It may not be free; the tool may cost money," says Barton. "The officer may have to put the money out of his pocket unless his department happens to pay for it."
The MacGyver effect

Sometimes, though, officers can be as resourceful as their situations allow. Each job may require a different solution for the problems at hand.

"Officers can be as innovative as they need, or as out-of-the-box as they want to be," says Logan. "To a certain degree, there really are no limits."

While Law Enforcement Technology does not hold a bias toward non-law enforcement specific equipment, some contributed ideas for alternative tools for three aspects of law enforcement include:

Tactical

* The fiberglass handle of a sledge hammer can be used as an option to the tactical ram for breaching. Officers can carry this common tool in their trunks without a specific storage system and such sledge hammers can be found at almost any commercial consumer hardware store. Limitations to usefulness can include a break or fracture in the handle or the possibility that the chosen size or weight may not provide enough force for the intended task.

* A telescopic pole originally intended to hang holiday lights can be outfitted with a video camera and used as a make-shift tactical pole cam.

"We bought a wireless camera, built a heavy-duty housing for it and devised one [of these tools] for a relatively low price," says Logue. He adds that it is possible to wire the camera from its audio-video ports to a consumer monitor on an officer's back.

* An automotive telescopic mirror and/or magnet can be used for evidence or drug searching and for material retrieval in smaller places. This telescopic pole and mirror were designed for automotive searching for engine problems. The telescopic pole and magnet can retrieve dropped magnetic tools and parts. Small, tight hidden places could potentially be a hazard when searched with a bare or gloved hand. Using the telescopic mirror and magnet can aid officers in searching for, locating and retrieving evidence.

* Zip ties can be used as handcuff alternatives to the large zip ties; if the large ties are too large for available storage, these smaller versions take three to secure a suspect: one on each wrist and one holding the ties together.

Undercover

* Certain consumer mp3 players on the market are able to record conversations to an mp3 file. Instead of a potentially expensive hidden wire, the consumer mp3 player may be able to record conversations while the officer holding it assumes the guise of someone listening to music.

* Many common cellular phones can fill in for an officer's note pad. A voice memo can be recorded on the phone for future reference, and the result will be a digital recording that won't be as easily lost as a scrap of paper or a note scribbled on a wrapper.

* Another innovative use for cellular phones involves those that have the ability to record a the dialogue on a call.

"You can program the phone to record both sides of the conversation or block your own voice from the playback," notes Logue.

Such recordings can be limited by law, though. Conversation recording regulations vary from state to state; in Missouri, it is acceptable to record a conversation as long as one contributing party is aware of the recording. Also, additional software will be needed to retrieve the recording from the phone.

* The blood pressure/heart rate monitor clip may not be a tool that would seem useful to an undercover officer, but it can be used as ruse — a crafty way to obtain the illusion of a polygraph test in suspect interviews. The effect can be created by attaching the stripped wire end of a finger heart rate monitor clip to a laptop USB port.

Surveillance

* Red evidence tape can be used to create red light by taping it over the vehicle interior dome light to save night vision during surveillance operations. Logue also suggests any red material applicable can be taped onto the light to achieve the same effect.

* Commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) radios may be able to transmit on a different frequency from many police scanners, allowing officers to communicate off the police scanner and rendering listening suspects none the wiser.

* A remote controlled (RC)mini-helicopter may appear to be a neighborhood child's toy but could be outfitted with a wireless camera to provide surveillance without moving officers too close to the situation. However, using a helicopter for this effect brings its own limitations such as wind conditions, flight time and load capacity. The weather on any given day might not allow the RC helicopter to fly with accuracy to the intended location. A short flight time may force officers closer to the intended landing position for surveillance, thus putting officers closer to potential danger. The helicopter's load capacity — its ability to carry an amount of weight — may be too low to handle the surveillance gear that would need to be attached to meeting the requirements of the mission. In addition, officers might have to receive a homeowner's permission to land the craft on a roof.

Two are better than one
Alternative tools are commonly not concocted off-hand, or on the street with a ball of string, a pencil and a milk crate. Instead, working together with fellow officers creates a brainstorm where many ideas can come to fruition.

Logue says that his team meets regularly and occasionally discusses the latest law enforcement technology and how to recreate it with tools they already have in their possession.

"If we can't figure something out," Logue adds, "we try to find the departments that do have the money for [new] equipment and we use their older equipment."

Indiana Governor to Speak at ISBAA Spring Meeting

Indiana Surety Bail Agents Association is holding its Spring Meeting on May 13, 2008 from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. (approximate). The meeting will be held at the Hilton, 8181 Shadeland Avenue (I-69 & 86th St.), Indianapolis, IN.
The Special Guest Speaker is Governor: Mitchell Daniels (8:30 a.m.)
Continuing Education credits are being given for all paid members.

Man Uses Violent Means to Avoid Bondsman

A man being sought by a bail bond agent after apparently missing a court hearing stabbed himself in the neck in an attempt to avoid going back to jail Thursday afternoon, Taft police said.

But the suspect, Preston Robbins, 25, suffered only minor injuries.

Robbins was supposed to appear in court on Jan. 16 for a hearing related to a charge of unlawfully starting a fire that destroyed his parents Maricopa home in 2006, according to court records.

But he apparently didn't show.

Taft Police Sgt. Ed Whiting said a bail agent tracked Robbins to a residence on the 400 block of Lucard Street Thursday afternoon and tried to take Robbins back into custody.

Whiting said the Robbins refused to go, and grabbed a knife and stabbed himself in the throat.

Taft police were called and arrived to find Robbins still holding the knife, Whiting said. The sergeant said Taft Police detective Corey Beilby talked Robbins into dropping the knife and Robbins was taken into custody without further incident.

Robbins was examined at the scene by firefighters and paramedics, then released to the bond agent.

Robbins was later treated at Kern Medical Center then booked into the Kern County jail, Whiting said.

Robbins is being held without bail, according to Kern County sheriff's jail records

He is charged with unlawfully starting a fire and failing to appear on a felony charge.

Maricopa Police originally arrested him on Sept. 19, 2006 after a fire broke out at his parents Maricopa home.

Bail For Sexual Crimes Questioned

When suspected rapist Juan Carlos Jimenez, 20, posted bail last week, it invoked an emotional reaction of dismay, shock and disappointment. Jimenez, a suspected gang member who allegedly sodomized and sexually assaulted an 86-year-old woman, poses a potential flight risk and a threat to the community by the nature of his activities. It's reasonable to ask why he was granted a reduction of bail by $15,000.

Surely the severity of the charges merit that a person accused of committing the crimes face a bail amount that more appropriately fits the felony charges. Unfortunately, the bail in this case was reduced from $40,000 to $25,000.

The court is bound by the Eighth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which requires that bail not be excessive. Of course, Jimenez is innocent until proven guilty. However, perhaps the Legislature, which passes laws that mandate the bail schedule, should take another look, especially when other accused criminals with lesser charges have been given much higher bails.
Utah's soft hand in dealing with sexual crimes not only is reflected in the low bail amounts but in the sentences and the state registry that relies heavily on self-reporting of the offenders.

We respect the authority of the judge but do not agree with his decision to reduce the bail as much as he did. It took 11 days for the elderly woman to report the alleged crime because she was terrified. That should stand for something.

While the judicial system worked as it should within the confines of the laws set with the bail schedule and hearing process, it proved that sometimes laws do not necessarily equate to justice. That's why we encourage a review of the state bail schedule in relation to sexual crimes.

Periodically evaluating current laws is a display of good faith on behalf of the public. The Legislature should do so during the next session.

Unfortunately, it will do no good to the community or the victim in this case.

New Bounty Hunter Laws

Bounty hunters would have to take at least 32 hours of training and receive a state license under a bill that has passed the Legislature.

The state Bail Bond Association supported the bill that now goes to the governor.

Unlike police, bounty hunters may force their way into a house without a warrant to find bail jumpers.

The Department of Licensing proposed the law after the Tacoma News Tribune reported bounty hunters were entering the wrong homes and arresting wrong people.

New Study About Crimes Committed on Bail

Almost one in five murder suspects in Britain last year were alleged to have committed the offense while on bail, it has emerged.

Police leaders said the figures proved a “systemic failure” in the judicial and sentencing process was undermining efforts to keep the streets safe.
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Figures obtained under the Freedom of Information Act by a newspaper showed that out of 462 murder cases last year, 79 of the accused suspects had been let out on remand over other crimes.

They follow a string of high-profile murders carried out by killers who had been freed from custody.

Nick Herbert, the Shadow Justice Secretary, added: “These shocking figures underline the need for tighter bail laws. Public safety must come first.”

In one county, Avon and Somerset, just under half of all those charged with murder in 2007 were on remand for other offenses.

Three suspects were on police bail, three on court bail and two on both court and police bail.

The statistics came from 34 forces in England, Scotland and Wales and did not include, amongst others, figures from the Metropolitan police, where the most murders took place last year.

One victim was Garry Newlove, 47, who was kicked to death outside his home in Cheshire last summer by killer Adam Swellings, who had been freed from custody earlier that day.

Last week an inquest heard that former Met police officer Garry Weddell shot dead his mother in law, Traute Maxfield, in Hertfordshire, and then committed suicide while waiting to be tried for the murder of his wife Sandra.

There was a further outcry when the coroner’s court heard that Weddell had possibly planned to kill more family members.

In January, when details of his case first emerged, Gordon Brown promised a review, saying: “If any changes in the law are necessary, we will make them.”

However last month it was revealed that 60 murder suspects were still walking the streets after being granted bail by the courts.

In manslaughter cases the figures are even more stark with 35 suspects out on bail - 85 per cent of those charged. Only six are in custody.

Courts are increasingly encouraged to use bail to ease the jail crisis which has led to the Government officially running out of cells for the first time.

Last month the “usable operation capacity” - the normal limit for inmate numbers - was exceeded by almost 100.

There are 2,000 overflow places, but many of these are in remote locations or otherwise unsuitable.

The latest Ministry of Justice figures show there are 81,914 inmates, 49 of which were having to be kept in police cells under the emergency Operation Safeguard scheme.

Police Federation vice chairman Alan Gordon said: “There are systemic failures in the judicial and sentencing process that need to be urgently addressed.

“The government must not allow a lack of prison spaces to dictate safety on the streets.”

A spokesman said bail was an independent judicial decision based on each case, and subject to conditions including curfews, financial sureties and the surrender of travel documents.

Some 64,800 suspected violent attackers were allowed bail in 2006.

Of these, almost one in ten - around 5,500 - did not return to court to face their charges.

Connecticut Wants Big Changes to Bail Bondsmen System

Connecticut lawmakers say it's time to reform Connecticut's bail bondsmen system.

Legislators held a hearing today on a bill that would subject bondsmen to testing and routine training, and allow the public safety commissioner to suspend or revoke their licenses if there's misconduct.

The legislation would also transfer oversight of bail bondsmen to the Public Safety Department from the Insurance Department.

State Representative Michael Lawlor of East Haven says federal indictments of bail bondsmen and police in New Haven in an alleged bribery scheme show the need for reforms.

There's also evidence that some bail bondsmen are illegally undercutting one another to attract business, which has allowed some dangerous criminals to pay little to no bail before getting out on the streets.

Governor M. Jodi Rell supports the reforms.

Similar proposals have died in the legislature in the past.

Bail Bondsman Shot From Behind; Man Admits to Shooting

A Richmond bail bondsman was shot three times from behind as he attempted to arrest a fugitive in South Richmond, a city prosecutor said today.

Chief Deputy Commonwealth's Attorney Matthew P. Geary said that James E. Carr, 20, has admitted to shooting James W. Woolfolk III early yesterday in a house on Joplin Avenue near Jefferson Davis Highway.

Carr was arraigned for Woolfolk's murder today by video conference with Richmond General District Court in Manchester. The hearing was conducted by video because of threats against Carr's safety by other inmates, Geary said. A preliminary hearing was set for March 26 in Richmond Circuit Court in Manchester.

Woolfolk, a 39-year-old Church Hill resident and father of a teenage daughter, was the first bail bondsman killed in the line of duty in the memory of people in the business. Jail inmates rely on bondsmen to bail them out of custody while they await trial.

Geary said Woolfolk died from shots to the back of the head, back of the neck and back. Woolfolk was attempting to arrest Carr for failure to appear in court last month on a charge of felony drug possession and three misdemeanor offenses.

Carr was arraigned today on those offenses, as well as a felony charge for failing to appear in court. General District Judge David E. Cheek Sr. set a trial date of April 2 on those charges.

In both cases, Carr was given a court-appointed lawyer, Dean Marcus, for his defense.

Briefs From the State Capitol

State lawmakers are considering legislation that would transfer oversight of the state's troubled bail bondsmen system from the Insurance Department to the Public Safety Department.

The bill, discussed Monday at a public hearing, would also subject bail bondsmen to testing and routine training, and allow the public safety commissioner to suspend or revoke their licenses if they commit misconduct.

Rep. Michael Lawlor, D-East Haven, co-chairman of the legislature's Judiciary Committee, said multiple federal indictments of New Haven bail bondsmen and city police officers involved in a bribery scheme point to the need for reforms this session.

There's also evidence that some bail bondsmen are illegally undercutting one another to attract business, allowing some dangerous criminals to pay little to no bail before getting out on the streets.

"This could have been prevented with the right oversight," said Lawlor, who expects more indictments. "It would not have gotten out of control."

Lawlor said the Public Safety Department, which oversees the state police, is better equipped to oversee the bail bondsmen than the Insurance Department, which typically handles various insurance matters.

Gov. M. Jodi Rell supports reform of the system, her spokesman said.

"The need for bail bonds reform is not new," said Christopher Cooper. "The bills have been put forth in each of the last several years, but never did get passed out of committee. What would be new would be legislative action on the issue."

Court Officer Payout Scheme

A state court security officer on Friday admitted taking cash payments from bail bondsmen, the latest development in a continuing investigation of the Connecticut bail bond industry.

Jill D'Antona, a judicial marshal employed at the Superior Court on Elm Street in New Haven, pleaded guilty in federal court to soliciting and accepting a gratuity. In her position, which her superiors said she is in the process of resigning, D'Antona, 37, of Seymour, was assigned to courthouse security and prisoner transportation duties.

D'Antona is accused of taking thousands of dollars over at least five years from Robert and Philip Jacobs, two of the three principals in a family-owned bail bond business operating in greater New Haven. The Jacobses, who were charged earlier in connection with the same investigation, have admitted paying D'Antona for using her official position to get them business.

The Jacobses, along with their father, Robert, and former New Haven police Lt. William White, were the first to be arrested — on March 13 of last year — in the corruption investigation. It was revealed in court Friday that Philip Jacobs began cooperating with FBI agents soon after and, notwithstanding the enormous publicity generated by his arrest, secretly recorded D'Antona taking money during a series of exchanges that began two months later.

On May 11, 2007, after learning that a potential client being arraigned at D'Antona's courthouse needed a bail bond, Philip Jacobs phoned D'Antona and asked her to hold the arrestee in the courthouse lock-up, according to an affidavit filed in court. D'Antona agreed, essentially guaranteeing Jacobs an exclusive opportunity to write a $17,500 bond.

Three days later, the affidavit says, Philip Jacobs met D'Antona in the courthouse basement and recorded the conversation as he gave her $100 for the favor.

The following July, Philip Jacobs asked D'Antona for another favor. He wanted her to enter a holding cell and obtain a phone number from a man with a court-ordered $150,000 bond. D'Antona agreed, according to the affidavit. After using the number to call the man's family, Philip Jacobs arranged to write the bond. He made $2,000 on the transaction, the affidavit says.

Less than a week later, with his tape recorder running, Philip Jacobs arranged to meet D'Antona in the parking lot of a hamburger stand in Derby to pay her what he said was her customary fee — $200, or 10 percent of his $2,000 he made on the bond.

During the hamburger-stand meeting, according to the affidavit, Philip Jacobs recorded D'Antona saying, "I know it's funny that you called today because I need to borrow money. Five hundred. I don't know when I can pay you back."

Philip Jacobs replied, "That's all right. I have 200 that I was gonna give you for helping me with that bond. I can give you the rest tomorrow."

Jacobs set up a meeting the following day to deliver the extra $300. Again he recorded the transaction, according to the affidavit. He gave her the $300 and told her she could keep it, as long as she kept helping him out.

D'Antona asked whether it was safe for them to be conversing over Jacob's phone — implying that law enforcement might be listening in. Philip Jacobs said his phone was fine, but he expressed concern about the courthouse telephones. D'Antona said she would call from somewhere else if she could arrange to do so, according to the affidavit.

D'Antona worked as a judicial marshal from 2000 to December 2007, when she went on a leave of absence following her arrest. She was expected to resign Thursday, but officials at the state Judicial Department were unsure whether the resignation had been processed.

Both Philip and Robert Jacobs have told authorities that D'Antona, over an unspecified number of years, provided them with services that enabled them to beat their competition and cut expenses.

Over five years, Philip Jacobs said, he paid D'Antona at least $1,500. In addition, he said he cashed her personal checks, most of which bounced, and loaned her about $800.

Robert Jacobs told authorities he paid D'Antona for her help and because he was sympathetic to what he called her "difficult financial condition." State officials said D'Antona was paid about $3,000 a month.

Robert Jacobs said he paid D'Antona between $50 and $100 three times a month over at least two years. In addition, he said he cashed her checks, which he said "often bounced."

Car Crashes Creates New Question About Bonds for Illegal Immigrants

People are asking questions about why an illegal immigrant who was charged with killing a Spanish Fork man in a car wreck was allowed to make bail, and the answers differ depending on who is giving them.

Utah County Sheriff Jim Tracy said Immigration and Customs Enforcement declined to investigate the immigration status of 21-year-old Gabriel Hernandez, while ICE officials say they were not properly informed of his arrest. Tracy said internal jail documents show that jail officials made two calls to the ICE office in Orem before Hernandez was released on bail.

Hernandez, of Orem, was arrested by Spanish Fork police on Jan. 31 and booked into the Utah County Jail on a charge of negligent homicide, a Class A misdemeanor. Police said he lost control of his car on an icy road and slid into 83-year-old Albert Burns, killing him. Hernandez was also charged with driving on a denied license and driving with no insurance.

On Thursday, Hernandez missed his arraignment at Spanish Fork's 4th District Court, and a no-bail warrant was issued for his arrest. Burns's wife fears that Hernandez fled to his native Mexico and will never face justice.

In a report, Diana Carrasco, a booking clerk at the Utah County Jail, said she made two calls to the ICE office in Orem asking if the agency wanted the jail to put an immigration hold on Hernandez so they could investigate his immigration status. She made the first call when Hernandez was booked into the jail and the other about an hour later as his mother was paying his bail, she wrote. The clerk also wrote that she faxed a booking report to the ICE office.

Because the charges against Hernandez were misdemeanors and because he had no history with ICE, the agent said "to go ahead and let him post bail and that they would watch for him to go to court. If he was convicted of the charges then they would place a hold on him," Carrasco wrote.

In another report, Deputy Trish Dawe said she spoke to Carrasco a few days later and asked whether she had faxed the booking report to the ICE office.

"She told me that during her discussion about this individual that '[The agent] did not have time to come down and interview [and] to let him go,' " Dawe wrote.

ICE spokeswoman Lori Haley said the agency was not made aware of Hernandez's arrest in a timely fashion. Haley said ICE agents attended the arraignment that Hernandez missed, and went to his apartment in Orem, which had been vacated.

"We weren't able to determine his alienage without interviewing him and obtaining the biographical information that we need," she said on Tuesday.

Haley also said that ICE's primary goal is to remove illegal aliens from the United States, not to assist local law enforcement with prosecutions. When it orders immigration holds on inmates, ICE prioritizes the "worst of the worst," Haley said, including violent offenders and suspects with terrorism connections.

"When ICE takes custody or places a detainer on an individual, it's to initiate removal proceedings," Haley said.

But had ICE been made aware of Hernandez's arrest and charges in time, Haley said the agency would have placed a hold on him so it could have investigated his immigration status.

Tracy said ICE agents had told the jail numerous times in the past that they usually only order holds on inmates who are facing aggravated or felony charges, who have a felony conviction on their records or who have been deported in the past.

Since no ICE hold was ordered for Hernandez, he was allowed to make bail. The $2,300 bail, $230 of which Hernandez had to pay for his release, was determined by a bail schedule established by the state.

Jail officials suspected that Hernandez may have been in the country illegally, but without an ICE hold, they had no grounds to deny him the same bail granted to anyone else, Tracy said. If they had, he said, it would have constituted a federal civil rights violation.

"We don't set that bail, and he has due process rights, and so if he can make the bail and he has no other holds, no other warrants ... he's going to be allowed to bail out," Tracy said.

Tracy said the jail has no way to verify immigration status on its own and has no authority to hold suspected or confirmed illegal aliens on immigration violations. Jail officials will contact ICE to ask if agents want to order a hold so they can investigate when an inmate sets one of several triggers. The primary trigger, Tracy said, is if the inmate was born outside the U.S.

The flap over Hernandez's release comes as the Legislature concluded its debate over a comprehensive immigration bill. The bill, which was submitted to Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. on Tuesday, includes a number of reforms, including giving police officers more authority to enforce immigration laws.

June Christensen, a neighbor of Burns, said she and her husband, Ken, are offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to Hernandez's arrest and conviction. She said anyone with information on his whereabouts should contact the Spanish Fork Police Department.

"I'm sure that he didn't mean to do it, but he was driving without the privilege in the United States," she said of Hernandez. "We just want to bring him in if we can find him."

Bondsman Slain

James W. Woolfolk III finally had found his calling.

After years of working at the family's restaurant and in the construction industry, Woolfolk started a bail-bonding business in Feburary 2007 with his brother, Kermit.

"He loved it," Kermit Woolfolk said. "He really loved to do the pickups. I don't know if it was the thrill of the chase or what."

One of those pickups led him in the predawn hours Thursday to a house in the 2300 block of Joplin Avenue in South Richmond, a working-class neighborhood just off Jefferson Davis Highway. He was looking for a man wanted on a felony warrant for failing to appear in court on drug and other charges.

James Woolfolk never made it out of that house alive, a grisly turn of events that now weighs heavily on his brother's mind. Kermit Woolfolk had been invited to go along, but he had other business that needed attention.

Richmond police reported to the brick-and-frame rancher at 2:22 a.m. and found Woolfolk, 39, shot to death.

Woolfolk is the first bail bondsman killed in the line of duty in Virginia in the memory of people in the business.

"I don't remember it ever happening in Virginia," said Carl D. Armstrong, president of the Virginia Bondsmen's Association and a member of the state advisory board for private security services.

Bondsmen acknowledge the inherent danger in their business, and a scan of newspaper sources showed at least one killing of a bondsman last year in Miami.

Two others -- one in Tennessee and one in North Carolina -- were killed in the line of duty in 2002. But such cases appear to be rare.

James Elbert Carr, the man Richmond police believe was responsible for Thursday morning's shooting -- and the man Woolfolk was tracking -- surrendered several hours later after police said he held seven people hostage in a house several blocks from the shooting scene and about a block from an elementary school.

Carr, 20, will appear today in Richmond General District Court in Manchester to be arraigned on a murder charge.

He had been arrested in January on a felony drug-possession charge and three misdemeanor charges. He was released on bond on those charges but failed to appear in court Feb. 20.

Woolfolk was attempting to arrest Carr to make the bond good. The warrant listed the house on Joplin Avenue as Carr's home address. A law-enforcement source said Woolfolk was alone when he entered the house, and he was allowed into the dwelling without force.

. . .

Kermit Woolfolk said when he and his brother started Woolfolk's Bail Bonding, James worked full time. Kermit kept his night-shift job at a manufacturing plant and helped James during his off hours.

Kermit Woolfolk is haunted by his last conversation with his brother, who called Wednesday evening before he went looking for Carr.

"He asked me what time I got off work and if I wanted to go with him on a pickup," Kermit recalled.

But Kermit had two other bonding cases to attend to, so James Woolfolk -- 6-foot-4 and solidly built -- went to Joplin Avenue without his brother.

"I guess he wanted me to go along with him," Kermit said softly, wiping away tears.

Nothing in state law requires a bondsman to be accompanied in apprehending someone who has skipped bail, but it is standard practice.

"You just don't do it by yourself," said Armstrong, a bondsman for more than 20 years who works for Duvall Bonding Inc. in Fairfax County.

The Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services will investigate Woolfolk's death and whether he operated within the rules established by the state since it began regulating the bail-bond business almost three years ago.

. . .

The homicide investigation turned into a hostage standoff just after dawn Thursday, when police used a tip to track Carr to a relative's house a few blocks away in the 1800 block of Joplin, near Oak Grove Elementary School.

Police said Carr was holding four small children and three adults hostage in the house.

They surrounded the house, cordoned off the area for blocks around, and prompted the school to delay opening.

Children walking toward school were sent home. School buses were diverted to the Arthur Ashe Center.

Police began talking with Carr around 6:30 a.m., and he surrendered about 8:10 a.m. Police recovered a gun from the scene.

"They did a terrific job of locating him and getting him into custody without incident," said Chief Deputy Commonwealth's Attorney Matthew P. Geary, who will prosecute the murder case against Carr.

Woolfolk was a graduate of John F. Kennedy High School in Richmond and was taking classes at Saint Paul's College in Lawrenceville, said Alicia Rasin, a family spokeswoman who has known the Woolfolk family for years.

Woolfolk is survived by a 14-year-old daughter.

He had worked at Woolfolk & Sons Seafood Restaurant, which his family has operated for more than 30 years on Mechanicsville Turnpike. He also had worked in the plastering business with his father James W. Woolfolk Jr., who also had served as a bail bondsman.

A few hours after Carr's arrest, Kermit Woolfolk sat in a television room of his Chesterfield County home and struggled to find the right words as he recalled his brother and business partner. "Just a great person," Woolfolk said. "Everybody loved him."

Investigator: It's No 'Dog' Show for Real-Life Bail Agents

Real bail-recovery agents don't use "Dog the Bounty Hunter" tactics, says a New Hampshire private investigator who's furious about a recent case in Hampton, N.H., in which three alleged "agents" were charged with handcuffing a woman and interrogating her at gunpoint.

According to Frank Abramovitz, a private investigator and former Massachusetts police officer, bail recovery agents in New Hampshire work through local police departments to recapture those who've jumped bail. They never brandish a badge, never handcuff witnesses and never point guns at witnesses' heads.

Abramovitz called The Daily News of Newburyport to press his point after reading the account of the recent arrests of Hampton, N.H., residents Robert Zucchari, 38; Nicholas Theisen, 55, a former Marblehead resident; and Jeaninne Anno, 28.

According to police documents on the incident, the three were arrested on felony charges related to criminal restraint on Thursday, in connection with a Feb. 14 incident in which they were charged with handcuffing Christine Zamora in her Hampton apartment and holding a gun to her head while pressing her for information about other people. If convicted of the charges, each could serve 31/2 to 7 years in jail.

Zamora and a witness reported to police that the three identified themselves as "federal bail agents," had gold badges, and were wearing guns while they spent 15 minutes aggressively interrogating a handcuffed Zamora after barging into her apartment.

"There's no such thing as a federal bail agent," Abramovitz said yesterday, speaking from Maryland. "They had no legal right to handcuff her. Bail recovery agents can only handcuff the prisoner they're going after. They're not a police officer; they're not law enforcement. In New Hampshire, by law they're not allowed to carry any kind of badge. I don't know who they are or who they thought they were."

Abramovitz said such actions really hurt the reputation of legitimate bail recovery agents, colloquially known as bounty hunters. He said if the allegations are true, it only reinforces the mistaken impression given by a reality-based cable TV program titled "Dog the Bounty Hunter," which follows the exploits of Duane "Dog" Chapman and Da Kine Bail Bonds of Honolulu.

"People think what they see on "Dog" on TV is the way everybody works," Abramovitz said. "I've never seen bounty hunters act like that, and as a matter of fact we're trying to get away from the words bounty hunter because of that. Half the bounty hunters I know have no use for Dog because a lot of what he does is very wrong. I've never kicked in a door in my life."

Abramovitz, 68, said he's never heard of these three individuals recently arrested in Hampton and he's familiar with the others in his field in the state. Further, Abramovitz checked the roster of the National Enforcement Agency — a professional organization for bail recovery agents — and he couldn't find their names. He checked other memberships of similar organizations and still couldn't find them.

Licensed private investigators are allowed to recover individuals who jump bail in New Hampshire, Abramovitz said. He and members of his firm, AMK Investigations, work in a number of states, including New Hampshire, Maryland and Maine.

When he has to retrieve someone for the bail bondsman, Abramovitz works with local police providing an array of information, including specific descriptions and following protocols. It's police, he said, who usually take the people he's after into custody, usually while he's with them.

"This is the kind of stuff that hurts us," Abramovitz said about the alleged behavior of the three arrested. "These guys come in like fools. You can get any kind of badge you want off the Internet these days."

In New Hampshire, there are strict regulations spelled out in state law determining the behavior and credentialing of private investigators and bail recovery agents, he said, and the same is true in Massachusetts. Abramovitz said he'd be happy to help officials learn more about the proper behavior for bail recovery agents.

Cleveland Bail Bond Agency Helps Break Prison's Revolving Door

When a person is arrested, it can be a time of extreme stress and confusion. It is important to have the information to make critical decisions along the way, including the decision to hire a bondsman.

At Quick ‘n Easy Friendly Honest Bail Bonds, their experienced, knowledgeable staff is ready to assist you with your decision, every step of the way.

Many of the defendants who post bond out are in and out of the justice system. At Quick ‘n Easy Friendly Honest Bail Bonds, they strongly believe that a lack of jobs contributes to the situation.

“We prefer not to have repeat customers,” Phil Pavarini, Jr., owner of Quick ‘n Easy Friendly Honest Bail Bonds said. “Most of our clients are, in their hearts, good people who have made some bad choices. At our agency, I try to give them the tools they need to make a better life for themselves.”

The first step in the right direction, Pavarini said, begins shortly after one of his licensed bondsmen arranges for you or your loved one’s release. To help people break the cycle, and because it is important to show the courts the person arrested is making an attempt toward a productive life, Quick ‘n Easy Friendly Honest Bail Bonds provides referrals to vocational training and job placement assistance.