Bounty Hunters and the Enforcement of Bail: When Justice
Deferred is Justice Denied
There seems to be a lot of interest in the bounty hunting
business these days... but I find that the public really knows
very little about us and that the reality of what we do exactly
is more speculative than not. As an industry leader, I think
that it is important to the health of this industry that you
know a little more about who we are, where we derive our
authority and most importantly- that 99% of us don't fit the
stereotype of a mullet-headed adrenaline junkie, which is only
being reinforced through the oxymoron of "reality TV."
The history of Bounty Hunting, which later evolved into what we
refer today as Bail Enforcement, is fascinating to say the
least. I would be lying to you if I didn't tell you that I find
myself daydreaming at times about the days of Pat Garrett, Bat
Masterson, and one of the most famous bounty hunters, Texas
Ranger Jack Duncan. But I am also practical enough to know that
that is a bygone era and very little applies to our profession
today. So I intend to spend very little time recounting the days
of the Wild Wild West.
Of course, most people have seen bounty hunters in the movies
and on television too; Steve McQueen starred in a movie entitled
"The Hunter," Robert DeNiro was in a picture called "Midnight
Run," and Clint Eastwood was in a story called "Pink Cadillac."
Old Westerns were notorious for portraying bounty hunters as
shrewd crusty characters adrift across the country recovering
fugitives. Currently, we have Duane, "Dog" Chapman parading
around as a bounty hunter and evangelical spiritualist really
making a mockery of what we do. Obviously this is nothing more
than fiction created by Hollywood but most of these characters
are at least part reality; these embellished fictional ideals
depict real men.
Historically speaking, it is important to understand where bail
law comes from. Contemporary bail law evolved from Old-English
common law, when a person posting bail for a defendant meant
that he could be eventually hanged or otherwise punished if the
accused did not return for trial. Today a bail bondsman is not
in any danger of losing his head, just a large sum of money
promised to the courts to insure the defendant's appearance.
This promised money is called a bail bond.
For our purposes, it is critical to understand that the
relationship between the bail bondsman and the defendant is
contractual in nature, which explains why the enforcement of
bail law is primarily a civil, and not criminal, action. It is
within this concept of common law that bail enforcement agents
derive their ability to work on behalf of a bail bondsman and
enforce this contract. Typically, this contract gives the
bondsman's agent the power to apprehend and surrender a
defendant at any time, in any manner, and at any place of his
choosing, though there are a few exceptions and the scope of our
authority is always being narrowed by a continuous onslaught of
legislation.
Modern-day bounty hunters and bail enforcement agents are by and
large low-key professionals with a very specific skill-set more
akin to private investigators than SWAT officers. We find
ourselves all over the country and occasionally somewhere on the
other side of the world in defense of our client's assets.
Today's bail enforcement agent can make in excess of $60,000 a
year, some well over $100,000 if they treat customers well, are
successful in locating the fugitive and run a business replete
with advertising and marketing strategies.
Collectively we account for more than 80% of all fugitive
apprehensions made where defendants were bond-secured and failed
to appear for court; it is done at ZERO cost to the tax payer.
Furthermore, through constructive partnerships between law
enforcement and bail enforcement, we have increased the
efficiency of the criminal justice system while decreasing its
overall cost to the public as well. Despite the negative press
we seem to be getting currently, actual incidents involving a
bail recovery agent are extremely rare.
I'm not sure where the future of bail enforcement lies but one
thing is for certain, the men and women who risk their own lives
to bring bail-fugitives to justice serve their communities well
and without recognition for bringing back into balance the
scales of Lady Justice; when a fugitive fails to appear for his
or her day in court there is often a victim who has to wait too
and "justice deferred is justice denied."