Federal Bonds

Federal Bail Bonds come into play when dealing with interstate crimes and federal crimes. These types of crimes include defacement of federal property, crimes that may or have crossed state lines, crimes investigated and prosecuted by federal agencies such as the FBI, and also offenses such as kidnapping, tax evasion, drug trafficking, and various types of fraud.

Federal bail bonds are often times higher than state bail bonds. The premium can also be higher. A premium rate of 15% is standard in the state of Florida for Federal Bail Bonds. When dealing with federal crimes, the judge has sole discretion to determine what the proper bail amount is, and will likely make this determination at the first appearance hearing, as opposed to state crimes, where the bail amount is often times set pursuant to a standard bond schedule enabling the defendant to bond out sometimes before even seeing a judge. If someone has been charged with federal crimes, the defendant will almost always stay in jail until the judge makes the final determination as to the total bail amount.

In federal court, judges often add a “Nebbia” requirement to the bond. Simply stated, this requires that the defendant and his/her family show that the collateral and money paying the bond is from a legitimate source. A Nebbia hearing is the process where the bail defendant demonstrates through a motion that is presented prior to the writing or posting of a Federal bail bond that this proof has been met. This requires the defendant and the co-signers of the bond to satisfactorily prove to the prosecutors the origin of all collateral and premium monies paid on the bond.

It is very important that the bail bondsman that you use to write the bond is familiar with court procedures and has experience in dealing with Nebbia requirements. This is because the bondsman is typically the person who analyzes the financial assets being used to underwrite the bond and is responsible for putting together what is known as a “Nebbia Proffer.” The bondsman usually creates the Nebbia Proffer and then gives it to the defendant’s attorney, who in turn provides it to the prosecutor. Then either the prosecutor will agree that the requirement has been met or not agree in which case the matter will be set for a Nebbia Hearing for the judge to decide the issue.