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Georgia law caps a professional surety premium at 15% of the face amount of the bond, with a minimum of $50 per bonded charge (O.C.G.A. § 17-6-30). That premium is non-refundable — it is what you pay the bonding company to post the full bond on your behalf. On a $10,000 bond that is $1,500. If you post a cash bond directly with the Sheriff instead, you pay the entire $10,000 plus a $20 non-refundable state bond fee, and the cash comes back at the end of the case.

It depends on where they are in the process. A person has to be fully booked before any bond can be posted, and a judge has to have set a bond amount. Cherokee County Magistrate Court operates 24 hours a day, 365 days a year with seven part-time judges specifically so that every person booked into the Adult Detention Center gets a first appearance and a bail decision. Georgia law requires that hearing within 48 hours of a warrantless arrest or 72 hours of an arrest on a warrant. Once a bond is set and our paperwork is accepted at the jail, release comes down to the jail’s processing time. Call us and we will tell you honestly where things stand.

You will need valid government-issued photo identification, verifiable contact information, and enough stability that we can reach you and reach the defendant. As the co-signer (also called the indemnitor) you are guaranteeing that the defendant appears at every court date until the court exonerates the bond. You can sign in person at our Canton office, or by email or fax if you are out of town.

The judge forfeits the bond and issues a bench warrant, and under Georgia law (O.C.G.A. § 17-6-71, as amended effective July 1, 2024) the court sets an execution hearing not sooner than 150 days and not later than 180 days after the failure to appear. As the co-signer you become responsible for the full face amount of the bond if the defendant is never produced. Call us the moment you know there is a problem — the statute contains remission provisions, but they are time-limited and they reward moving fast.

Not always, and any bondsman who tells you otherwise is not being straight with you. Under O.C.G.A. § 17-6-1, offenses including murder, rape, armed robbery, aggravated child molestation, aggravated sexual battery, home invasion in the first degree, drug trafficking and criminal street gang offenses are bailable only before a judge of the Superior Court. Probation violations frequently carry no bond at all until a judge acts. We will look at the charge and tell you exactly what is possible.

Talk to us. The 15% premium is set by statute and cannot be discounted below the statutory minimum, but how you pay it is a conversation worth having. Bring what you have and we will work with you.