A new breed of investigator is rapidly replacing the ol? cowboys and bounty hunters; he or she has an exceptional level of knowledge in all aspects of the bail bond business and can advise clients in everything from making better bonding decisions to legal collection methods. The enforcer will understand how Civil Law applies to his undertakings and that reducing the exposure of liability to a bondsman is not only an ethical obligation but good customer service as well.
Yes, I mentioned ethics and customer service! This is where the bail recovery industry is headed.
Get comfortable with research and learn to identify the multitude of sources of information for not only the laws in your state affecting bail action, but everything that concerns the bondsman too.
Contrary to popular opinion, competent fugitive recovery agents are perhaps the cream of the crop in the private investigation industry! Bounty hunting requires the investigator to be the absolute best in surveillance, pretexting, gathering information from computer databases, public records sources, interview and interrogation, statement analysis, civil and criminal law, cultivating informants, use of force, extradition, and mastery of the techniques required to apprehend and arrest some of the most wanted people in the United States.
Your goal should be to become able to counsel your clients on more than just how to put a guy in jail, even though that will be the most important aspect of your services for them. I've gotten more of my competition's clients by just being able to teach them how to make better bond writing decisions and to show them where their current investigator is jeopardizing the bonding company (back to legal liabilities) than my ability to find a defendant in a higher percentage of cases than he can.
The bottom line is that the bail enforcement profession has no more room for Bounty Hunters. If your goal is to become a professional within this industry and are prepared to make the effort, please read on!
The history of Bounty Hunting, which later evolved into what we refer today as Bail Enforcement, is fascinating to say the least. I would be lying to you if I didn't tell you that I find myself daydreaming at times about the days of Pat Garrett, Bat Masterson, and one of the most famous bounty hunters, Texas Ranger Jack Duncan, but I am also practical enough to know that that is a bygone era and very little applies to our profession today. So I intend to spend very little time recounting the days of the Wild Wild West.
Today's bail enforcement agent can make in excess of $60,000 a year, some well over $100,000 (absolutely possible- I know of at least 4 pros who did it last year). Collectively we account for more than 80% of all apprehensions made where defendants were bond-secured and failed to appear for court; through constructive partnerships between law enforcement and bail enforcement we have increased the efficiency of the criminal justice system while decreasing the cost to the public.
Historically speaking, it is important to understand where bail law comes from. Contemporary bail law evolved from Old-English common law, when a person posting bail for a defendant meant that he could be eventually hung or otherwise punished if the accused did not return for trial. Today a bail bondsman is not in any danger of losing his head, just a large sum of money promised to the courts to insure the defendant?s appearance. This promised money is called a bail bond.
For the purposes of surrendering the defendant, in general, any person who has deposited money to secure the release of the defendant (paid bail) may at any time prior to such person being discharged from his offense, and at any place within the state, himself arrest the defendant or commission any person of suitable age to do so. While this was articulated by the Supreme Court in Taylor v. Taintor (1872) these rules may no longer apply.
Increasingly, states are beginning to legislate this concept and have begun to enact their own sets of laws restricting exactly who can and cannot contract with a surety on a bond. I am not talking about a bonafide employee of a bail bond company; I am speaking about anyone he empowers as an agent to act on his behalf or contracts out his recovery assignments.
Please understand? you can be convicted of a serious crime if your state requires you to be licensed or registered and you fail to do so.
The most common question I answer every day is, ?I want to be a Bounty Hunter. How do I get started??
My short answer is:
1. Get licensed, if required.
2. If you are unsure if licensing is required, look it up.
3. Get professional and commercial liability insurance.
4. If you are going to transport fugitives, get an automobile insurance policy that will cover you for business usage AND handcuffed or otherwise restrained passengers.
5. Get the essential bail enforcement clothing, gear and support systems in place.
6. Market and advertise your services.
7. If successful, find and arrest the fugitive, then take him to jail.
8. Invoice and collect for services from client.
9. Repeat steps 6 through 8 as often as necessary.
Is it really this simple? Not really, but many hundreds of professionals have broken into the bail recovery industry in the last few decades. I believe that you can do it too but a little help from the right sources never hurts.
To learn more, visit www.BondForfeitures.com!
