Kemp, TX asked in Criminal Law for Texas

Q: So the judge can set the amount of bail to what he wants. Is There's no legal limit??

Is there not a certain amount

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2 Lawyer Answers

A: The amount of bail must be reasonably and proportionate to the severity of the crime. A defendant can file a motion to reduce the amount of bail. A judge's decision on the amount of bail can be appealed using an abuse of discretion standard.

A: Bail is set using various guidelines, which vary a bit between jurisdictions. The bail amount has to be reasonable when considered in light of the severity of the crime, but bail will also be higher if the defendant has a substantial criminal history, especially one that includes bail jumping. Bail is meant to ensure that a defendant isn’t going to be committing more crimes while out of police custody and that the defendant will come back to court when summoned, so the amount factors those issues in.

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