The Eighth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution explicitly prohibits “excessive bail.” The term “excessive bail” is not defined in the Constitution and the Supreme Court has weighed in on what it means, holding that bail cannot be set so high as to be a ploy to force a defendant to remain in jail. But, Court has also ruled that the Eighth Amendment’s bar on excessive bail does not create a right to any bail—a court may refuse to release a defendant at all under certain circumstances. In conjunction with his vast know-how, our company leverages the robust legal expertise of working in different courts.
Just as the defendant has the right to seek a lower bail, the prosecution can request that the court set a higher level of bail based on the risk that the defendant will flee from the jurisdiction or inflict harm upon a victim or other members of the public. (18 USC § 3142 (f).) And, the court may hold a hearing to inquire into the source of bail funds that it suspects may be illegal (proceeds from drug sales, for example). Bail is only one of the conditions that a court may impose in order to grant release of a defendant from jail pending trial. Other conditions include travel restrictions, relinquishing a passport, drug testing, electronic monitoring devices (ankle bracelets), house arrest, supervision and reporting during release, and others.