When a person is charged with a crime, when they make their first appearance in court, a judge will set conditions of release—this occurs whether a person is appearing in front of the judge while in custody (in jail), or appearing out of custody. In either case, the conditions of release may include a requirement that the person deposit some amount of bail.
When a judge decides how much bail should be required, generally speaking there are two factors that a judge considers when setting bail:
- Whether the person is a flight risk (i.e. will the person return to court); and
- Whether the person is a public safety risk (i.e. a threat to the community).
Generally speaking, maximum bail amounts correspond to the maximum fine for that specific charge, and the maximum bail is generally two times the maximum fine. For example, a misdemeanor charge carries a maximum fine of $1,000, so generally, the maximum bail is $2,000 for a misdemeanor offense.
There are certain exceptions to the rule which limits maximum bail to twice the maximum fine amount. One of the exceptions is in Domestic Assault charges which are treated differently. Specifically, when a person is charged with misdemeanor Domestic Assault, the maximum bail that a court can set is not limited to twice the fine, but can be set at up to 10 times the maximum fine amount, or $10,000.