Question: What is bail? How is this amount determined in Oklahoma?
Answer: Bail is typically a procedure or a mechanism which is put in place to ensure that somebody will return to court to face the charges against them. Bail is a balancing act, meaning the courts need to balance how much money is necessary to ensure that a person returns to court to answer charges, but also how much money is necessary to ensure that the community is going to be safe if this person does, in fact, post bail and does not stay in jail while they’re awaiting prosecution on their charges. The amounts are determined partially through that balancing act, and there are also bond schedules that are in place. There are pre-set bond amounts on some pretty common charges. So whenever somebody is arrested, the officer can just apply one of the pre-set bond amounts instead of forcing the person to remain in jail so that a judge can set their bond individually.