I've gotten several calls lately from people wanting to post bail for a friend or loved one who got arrested for DUI. In Los Angeles County, the bail for a first time DUI, 23152(a)VC or 23152(b)VC is $5,000. In Orange County, the bail is $2,500.
If someone is arrested for a DUI and it is counted as their 1st DUI within 10 years, they have a local driver's license and no other holds or charges, they are usually released on their own recognizance after a waiting period of typically 4-6 hours. The person also must have cleared a warrant check. The time for the warrant check to clear can take anywhere from an hour to 24 hours depending on the jail.
A release on their own recognizance means they are released on their own promise to appear in court as ordered. This means you do not have to post bail to get them out. In some rare situations, a bond can allow them to get released earlier but MOST of the time, you are better off waiting for them to be released on their own recognizance.
Some bail agents will take your money, rush down to the jail and try to post the bail bond before the person has been reviewed for an O.R. release. Once the person is released on the bail bond, you can't get your money back from the bail bond company.
Other times, with larger bonds neither the bail agent or the family have any way of knowing the person is being considered for an O.R. release. They find out from the defendant upon his release. He tells them the detention release officer told him he was going to be released on his own recognizance. This rarely happens but when it does it causes an unhappy situation. At some jails, if a person is eligible for an O.R. release, the jail won't take a bail bond.
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