N.Y. Criminal Procedure Law 520.20 – Bail and bail bonds; posting of bail bond and justifying affidavits; form and contents thereof
§ 520.20 Bail and bail bonds; posting of bail bond and justifying
Terms Used In N.Y. Criminal Procedure Law 520.20
- Affidavit: A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it, before a notary or officer having authority to administer oaths.
- Bail: Security given for the release of a criminal defendant or witness from legal custody (usually in the form of money) to secure his/her appearance on the day and time appointed.
- Bail: means cash bail, a bail bond or money paid with a credit card. See N.Y. Criminal Procedure Law 500.10
- Bail bond: means a written undertaking, executed by one or more obligors, that the principal designated in such instrument will, while at liberty as a result of an order fixing bail and of the posting of the bail bond in satisfaction thereof, appear in a designated criminal action or proceeding when his attendance is required and otherwise render himself amenable to the orders and processes of the court, and that in the event that he fails to do so the obligor or obligors will pay to the people of the state of New York a specified sum of money, in the amount designated in the order fixing bail. See N.Y. Criminal Procedure Law 500.10
- Court: includes , where appropriate, a judge authorized to act as described in a particular statute, though not as a court. See N.Y. Criminal Procedure Law 500.10
- Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
- Indictment: The formal charge issued by a grand jury stating that there is enough evidence that the defendant committed the crime to justify having a trial; it is used primarily for felonies.
- Insurance company bail bond: means a surety bond, executed in the form prescribed by the superintendent of financial services, in which the surety-obligor is a corporation licensed by the superintendent of financial services to engage in the business of executing bail bonds. See N.Y. Criminal Procedure Law 500.10
- Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
- Obligor: means a person who executes a bail bond on behalf of a principal and thereby assumes the undertaking described therein. See N.Y. Criminal Procedure Law 500.10
- Partially secured bail bond: means a bail bond secured only by a deposit of a sum of money not exceeding ten percent of the total amount of the undertaking. See N.Y. Criminal Procedure Law 500.10
- Personal property: All property that is not real property.
- Principal: means a defendant in a criminal action or proceeding, or a person adjudged a material witness therein, or any other person so involved therein that the principal may by law be compelled to appear before a court for the purpose of having such court exercise control over the principal's person to secure the principal's future attendance at the action or proceeding when required, and who in fact either is before the court for such purpose or has been before it and been subjected to such control. See N.Y. Criminal Procedure Law 500.10
- Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
- Secured bail bond: means a bail bond secured by either:
(a) Personal property which is not exempt from execution and which, over and above all liabilities and encumbrances, has a value equal to or greater than the total amount of the undertaking; or
(b) Real property having a value of at least twice the total amount of the undertaking. See N.Y. Criminal Procedure Law 500.10 - Unsecured bail bond: means a bail bond, other than an insurance company bail bond, not secured by any deposit of or lien upon property. See N.Y. Criminal Procedure Law 500.10
affidavits; form and contents thereof.
1. (a) Except as provided in paragraph (b) when a bail bond is to be posted in satisfaction of bail, the obligor or obligors must submit to the court a bail bond in the amount fixed, executed in the form prescribed in subdivision two, accompanied by a justifying affidavit of each obligor, executed in the form prescribed in subdivision four.
(b) When a bail bond is to be posted in satisfaction of bail fixed for a defendant charged by information or simplified information or prosecutor's information with one or more traffic infractions and no other offense, the defendant may submit to the court, with the consent of the court, an insurance company bail bond covering the amount fixed, executed in a form prescribed by the superintendent of financial services.
2. Except as provided in paragraph (b) of subdivision one, a bail bond must be subscribed and sworn to by each obligor and must state:
(a) The name, residential address and occupation of each obligor; and
(b) The title of the criminal action or proceeding involved; and
(c) The offense or offenses which are the subjects of the action or proceeding involved, and the status of such action or proceeding; and
(d) The name of the principal and the nature of his involvement in or connection with such action or proceeding; and
(e) That the obligor, or the obligors jointly and severally, undertake that the principal will appear in such action or proceeding whenever required and will at all times render himself amenable to the orders and processes of the court; and
(f) That in the event that the principal does not comply with any such requirement, order or process, such obligor or obligors will pay to the people of the state of New York a designated sum of money fixed by the court.
3. A bail bond posted in the course of a criminal action is effective and binding upon the obligor or obligors until the imposition of sentence or other termination of the action, regardless of whether the action is dismissed in the local criminal court after an indictment on the same charge or charges by a superior court, and regardless of whether such action is partially conducted or prosecuted in a court or courts other than the one in which the action was pending when such bond was posted, unless prior to such termination such order of bail is vacated or revoked or the principal is surrendered, or unless the terms of such bond expressly limit its effectiveness to a lesser period; provided, however, the effectiveness of such bond may only be limited to a lesser period if the obligor or obligors submit notice of the limitation to the court and the district attorney not less than fourteen days before effectiveness ends.
4. A justifying affidavit must be subscribed and sworn to by the obligor-affiant and must state his name, residential address and occupation. Depending upon the kind of bail bond which it justifies, such affidavit must contain further statements as follows:
(a) An affidavit justifying an insurance company bail bond must state:
(i) The amount of the premium paid to the obligor; and
(ii) All security and all promises of indemnity received by the surety-obligor in connection with its execution of the bond, and the name, occupation and residential and business addresses of every person who has given any such indemnifying security or promise.
An action by the surety-obligor against an indemnitor, seeking retention of security deposited by the latter with the former or enforcement of any indemnity agreement of a kind described in this sub-paragraph, will not lie except with respect to agreements and security specified in the justifying affidavit.
(b) An affidavit justifying a secured bail bond must state every item of personal property deposited and of real property pledged as security, the value of each such item, and the nature and amount of every lien or encumbrance thereon.
(c) An affidavit justifying a partially secured bail bond or an unsecured bail bond must state the place and nature of the obligor-affiant's business or employment, the length of time he has been engaged therein, his income during the past year, and his average income over the past five years.