77-20-505. Forfeiture of a bail bond.

349 words·~2 min read·/ut/title-77/chapter-20/77-20-505

A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.

Effective 11/16/2021

(1)If a surety fails to bring the defendant before the court within the time period described in Section 77-20-502 , the prosecuting attorney may request the forfeiture of the bail bond by:

(a)filing a motion for bail bond forfeiture with the court, supported by proof of notice to the surety of the defendant's failure to appear; and

(b)emailing a copy of the motion to the surety.

(2)A court shall enter judgment of bail bond forfeiture without further notice if the court finds, by a preponderance of the evidence:

(a)the defendant failed to appear as required;

(b)the surety was given notice of the defendant's failure to appear in accordance with Section 77-20-501 ;

(c)the surety failed to bring the defendant to the court within the 180-day time period under Section 77-20-502 ; and

(d)the prosecuting attorney has complied with the notice requirements under Subsection

(1).

(3)If the surety shows, by a preponderance of the evidence, that the surety has failed to bring the defendant before the court because the defendant is deceased through no act of the surety, the court may not enter judgment of bail bond forfeiture and the bail bond is exonerated.

(a)The amount of bail forfeited is the face amount of the bail bond, but if the defendant is in the custody of another jurisdiction and the state extradites or intends to extradite the defendant, the court may reduce the amount forfeited to the actual or estimated costs of returning the defendant to the court's jurisdiction.

(b)A judgment under Subsection

(5)shall:

(i)identify the surety against whom judgment is granted;

(ii)specify the amount of monetary bail forfeited;

(iii)grant the forfeiture of the bail bond; and

(iv)be docketed by the clerk of the court in the civil judgment docket.

(5)A prosecuting attorney may immediately commence collection proceedings to execute a judgment of bail bond forfeiture against the assets of the surety.

Renumbered and Amended by Chapter 4 , 2021 Special Session 2