Thread: NJ-Whose bail really is it?( Editorial with Reply )

Whose bail really is it?
November 25, 2009


The idea behind bail is to insure someone's appearance in court.


Bail is posted, a suspect is released, and if he, or she, continually shows up for court hearings, bail is returned.


If a suspect "skips bail," the bail is forfeited.


But what happens to the bail if a suspect doesn't appear in court on no fault of his own — like if he is kicked out of the country.


Well, whomever posted bail is out of luck. At least in Morris County.


There are no simple cases, it seems, involving illegal aliens and this is another example of that.


In a now-famous case, Carlos Ulloa Murillo, 21, was charged with sexual assault in April, 2008. In August of that year, he posted $50,000 bail through TBA Bail Bonds. But since it was known that the suspect was here illegally, he was not released. Rather, he was picked up by federal authorities and ultimately deported to Honduras.


That caused a ruckus in its own right. Morris County authorities were incensed that Ulloa Murillo was dispatched out of the country before being punished for his alleged crime. There still is not an ultimate solution to that problem, although the courts have ruled that bail (we're back to that again) can be increased to keep an illegal immigrant charged with a serious crime in custody if deportation is possible.


Last week with the suspect back in Honduras — presumably — a court hearing ensued about the $50,000 bail.


What should happen to it?


A case certainly can be made that the bail should be returned to the company that wrote the bond. After all, the suspect in this case did not flee. He was in custody of one type or another since his arrest. True, he did not show up for a trial. But that was because the federal government deported him.


Judge John Dangler in state Superior Court, Morristown, essentially said tough luck. He said the insurance company that covered the bond should have known that the suspect was a candidate to be deported.


It is never easy trying to get money from government — especially when government is holding it in the first place, as is the case with bail. The $50,000 that will not be returned will be split by the state and Morris County.


That's good for them, but an appeal of Dangler's ruling by the insurance company, Financial Casualty & Surety Co., seems prudent. Losing bail when a suspect was prevented from appearing in court by the actions of another government unit has a sour ring to it.

Fred Snowflack is editorial page editor of the Daily Record. Contact him at fsnowfla@gannett. com

http://www.dailyrecord.com/apps/pbcs.dl ... 0991124052

No sympathy for bail bond firm
November 28, 2009




Fred Snowflack wrote a recent column showing sympathy to TBA Bail Bonds for losing a $50,000 bail for Carlos Ulloa Murillo. Murillo was an illegal immigrant who was accused of molesting a child. The Federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, with authorization from a immigration judge, had the suspect deported to Honduras two days after he posted bail.


Bail bond companies are just another business that takes risks. The company should have known that Murillo was in the country illegally and subject to deportation. The bail bond company should review lending procedures the company practices more proficiently. It might be less likely to attract immigrants who arrive in our country illegally and can leave with or without assistance from our government given the opportunity.


I didn't see anything written by Snowflack on behalf of the mortgage industry for granting mortgages to illegal aliens. Unemployment is high and the illegal immigrant population is unable to pay their mortgage obligations (increasing the current foreclosure percentages). Mortgage companies took risks for financial greed.


If a company, regardless of what service it provides, ignores disclosed information or lacks strong guidelines, then the business deserves to fail.


NANCY SHIVAS
Morris Plains


http://www.dailyrecord.com/article/2009 ... +bond+firm

Judge John Dangler in state Superior Court, Morristown, essentially said tough luck. He said the insurance company that covered the bond should have known that the suspect was a candidate to be deported.

Personally, I like it. Bail Bondsmen make a mint off of illegals, they know if the charge is deportable (and deportation is likely) that once on the street the illegal is gone with the wind!