Q: I was arrested and posted bond for a felony charge (assault with a deadly weapon) in error.
I was arrested for assault with a deadly weapon when the actual charge was supposed to be family violence. I don't know where the error occurred or who made the error but I posted bond and went to my first court date and the judge told me my actual charge was family violence. I paid the bonding company 6000$ when I should have only paid $500 for family violence. Can I get the difference back from the bonding company since it was an error and I never should have been arrested and booked in under a felony charge?
A: Unfortunately you will not be able to get the difference (between what you probably should have paid and what you did pay for your bond) from the bonding company for the following reason. the bonding company had nothing to do with setting your bond at such a high amount because the company was not responsible for the mistake which caused you to be arrested for the more serious charge instead of the misdemeanor. The police, prosecutor's office , or maybe the judge who set bond created this problem when they incorrectly charged you with the felony. So when that happened, you wanted to get out of jail on bond and so you (or your family or friends) contacted the bonding company and entered into a contractual relationship with that bonding company. You agreed to pay the bondsman $6,000 and the bonding company agreed to post your bond. You paid and they got you released. So, you both did what you agreed to do. You can talk to them about the problem, but my guess is that the best result you will be able to get here is that they might agree to post your lower bond (if the family violence case) without charging you anything extra for the premium on that bond. It never hurts to ask for some kind of refund, but be sure to keep your cool if and when they deny you a refund. Good luck with your case.
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