Chapter 903 — Chapter 903
35 sections in this chapter.
Fla. Stat. § 903.011 Pretrial release; general terms; statewide uniform bond schedule
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(1) As used in this chapter, the terms “bail” and “bond” include any and all forms of pretrial release.(2) Any monetary or cash component of any form of pretrial release may be met by a surety bond.(3) Differing monetary amounts may not be set for cash, surety, or other forms of …
Fla. Stat. § 903.02 Actions following denial; changes in bail conditions or bond amount; separation by charge or offense
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(1) If application for bail is made to an authorized court and denied, no court of inferior jurisdiction shall admit the applicant to bail unless such court of inferior jurisdiction is the court having jurisdiction to try the defendant.(2) No judge of a court of equal or inferior…
Fla. Stat. § 903.03 Jurisdiction of trial court to admit to bail; duties and responsibilities of Department of Corrections
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(1) After a person is held to answer by a trial court judge, the court having jurisdiction to try the defendant shall, before indictment, affidavit, or information is filed, have jurisdiction to hear and decide all preliminary motions regarding bail and production or impounding o…
Fla. Stat. § 903.035 Applications for bail; information provided; hearing on application for modification; penalty for providing false or misleading information or omitting material information
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(1)(a) All information provided by a defendant, in connection with any application for or attempt to secure bail, to any court, court personnel, or individual soliciting or recording such information for the purpose of evaluating eligibility for, or securing, bail for the defenda…
Fla. Stat. § 903.0351 Restrictions on pretrial release pending probation-violation hearing or community-control-violation hearing
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(1) In the instance of an alleged violation of felony probation or community control, bail or any other form of pretrial release shall not be granted prior to the resolution of the probation-violation hearing or the community-control-violation hearing to:(a) A violent felony offe…
Fla. Stat. § 903.045 Nature of criminal surety bail bonds
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It is the public policy of this state and the intent of the Legislature that a criminal surety bail bond, executed by a bail bond agent licensed pursuant to chapter 648 in connection with the pretrial or appellate release of a criminal defendant, shall be construed as a commitmen…
Fla. Stat. § 903.046 Purpose of and criteria for bail determination
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(1) The purpose of a bail determination in criminal proceedings is to ensure the appearance of the criminal defendant at subsequent proceedings and to protect the community against unreasonable danger from the criminal defendant.(2) When determining whether to release a defendant…
Fla. Stat. § 903.047 Conditions of pretrial release
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(1) As a condition of pretrial release, whether such release is by surety bail bond or recognizance bond or in some other form, the defendant must:(a) Refrain from criminal activity of any kind.(b) If the court issues an order of no contact, refrain from any contact of any type w…
Fla. Stat. § 903.0471 Violation of condition of pretrial release
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Notwithstanding s. 907.041, a court may, on its own motion, revoke pretrial release and order pretrial detention if the court finds probable cause to believe that the defendant committed a new crime while on pretrial release or violated any other condition of pretrial release in …
Fla. Stat. § 903.05 Qualification of sureties
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A surety for the release of a person on bail, other than a company authorized by law to act as a surety, shall be a resident of the state or own real estate within the state.
Fla. Stat. § 903.06 Validity of undertaking by minor
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Minors may bind themselves by a bond to secure their release on bail in the same manner as persons sui juris.
Fla. Stat. § 903.08 Sufficiency of sureties
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The combined net worth of the sureties, exclusive of any other bonds on which they may be principal, or surety and property exempt from execution, shall be at least equal to the amount specified in the undertaking.
Fla. Stat. § 903.09 Justification of sureties
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(1) A surety shall execute an affidavit stating that she or he possesses the qualifications and net worth required to become a surety. The affidavit shall describe the surety’s property and any encumbrances and shall state the number and amount of any bonds entered into by the su…
Fla. Stat. § 903.101 Sureties; licensed persons; to have equal access
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Subject to rules adopted by the Department of Financial Services and by the Financial Services Commission, every surety who meets the requirements of ss. 903.05, 903.06, 903.08, and 903.09, and every person who is currently licensed by the Department of Financial Services and reg…
Fla. Stat. § 903.105 Appearance bonds
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Any criminal defendant who is required to meet monetary bail or bail with any monetary component may satisfy such bail by providing a surety bond as otherwise provided by law or by providing an appearance bond as follows:(1) Any defendant posting an appearance bond shall apply th…
Fla. Stat. § 903.131 Bail on appeal, revocation; recommission
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If a person admitted to bail on appeal commits and is convicted of a separate felony while free on appeal, the bail on appeal shall be revoked and the defendant committed forthwith.
Fla. Stat. § 903.132 Bail on appeal; conditions for granting; appellate review
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(1) No person may be admitted to bail upon appeal from a conviction of a felony unless the defendant establishes that the appeal is taken in good faith, on grounds fairly debatable, and not frivolous. However, in no case shall bail be granted if such person has previously been co…
Fla. Stat. § 903.133 Bail on appeal; prohibited for certain felony convictions
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Notwithstanding s. 903.132, no person shall be admitted to bail pending review either by posttrial motion or appeal if he or she was adjudged guilty of:(1) A felony of the first degree for a violation of s. 782.04(2) or (3), s. 787.01, s. 794.011(4), s. 806.01, s. 893.13, or s. 8…
Fla. Stat. § 903.14 Contracts to indemnify sureties
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(1) A surety shall file with the bond an affidavit stating the amount and source of any security or consideration which the surety or anyone for his or her use has received or been promised for the bond. The affidavit may be filed in person or electronically.(2) A surety may main…
Fla. Stat. § 903.16 Deposit of money or bonds as bail
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(1) A defendant who has been admitted to bail, or another person in the defendant’s behalf, may deposit with the official authorized to take bail money or nonregistered bonds of the United States, the state, or a city, town, or county in the state, equal in market value to the am…
Fla. Stat. § 903.17 Substitution of cash bail for other bail
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When bail other than a deposit of money or bonds has been given, the defendant or the surety may deposit money or bonds as provided in s. 903.16 and have the original bond canceled.
Fla. Stat. § 903.18 Bail after deposit of money or bonds
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Bail by sureties may be substituted for a deposit of money or bonds as bail any time before a breach of the bond.
Fla. Stat. § 903.20 Surrender of defendant
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The defendant may surrender himself or herself or a surety may surrender the defendant any time before a breach of the bond.
Fla. Stat. § 903.21 Method of surrender; exoneration of obligors
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(1) A surety desiring to surrender a defendant shall deliver a copy of the bond and the defendant to the official who had custody of the defendant at the time bail was taken or to the official into whose custody the defendant would have been placed if she or he had been committed…
Fla. Stat. § 903.22 Arrest of principal by surety before forfeiture
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A surety may arrest the defendant before a forfeiture of the bond for the purpose of surrendering the defendant or the surety may authorize a peace officer to make the arrest by endorsing the authorization on a certified copy of the bond.
Fla. Stat. § 903.26 Forfeiture of the bond; when and how directed; discharge; how and when made; effect of payment
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(1) A bail bond shall not be forfeited unless:(a) The information, indictment, or affidavit was filed within 6 months from the date of arrest, and(b) The clerk of court gave the surety at least 72 hours’ notice, exclusive of Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays, before the time of th…
Fla. Stat. § 903.27 Forfeiture to judgment
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(1) If the forfeiture is not paid or discharged by order of a court of competent jurisdiction within 60 days and the bond is secured other than by money and bonds authorized in s. 903.16, the clerk of the circuit court for the county where the order was made shall enter a judgmen…
Fla. Stat. § 903.28 Remission of forfeiture; conditions
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(1) On application within 2 years from forfeiture, the court shall order remission of the forfeiture if it determines that there was no breach of the bond.(2) If the defendant surrenders or is apprehended within 90 days after forfeiture, the court, on motion at a hearing upon not…
Fla. Stat. § 903.286 Return of cash bond; requirement to withhold unpaid fines, fees, court costs; cash bond forms
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(1) Notwithstanding s. 903.31(2), the clerk of the court shall withhold from the return of a cash bond posted on behalf of a criminal defendant by a person other than a bail bond agent licensed pursuant to chapter 648 sufficient funds to pay any unpaid costs of prosecution, costs…
Fla. Stat. § 903.29 Arrest of principal by surety after forfeiture
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Within 2 years from the date of forfeiture of a bond, the surety may arrest the principal for the purpose of surrendering the principal to the official in whose custody she or he was at the time bail was taken or in whose custody the principal would have been placed had she or he…
Fla. Stat. § 903.31 Canceling the bond
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(1) Within 10 business days after the conditions of a bond have been satisfied or the forfeiture discharged or remitted, the court shall order the bond canceled and, if the surety has attached a certificate of cancellation to the original bond, the clerk of the court shall mail o…
Fla. Stat. § 903.32 Defects in bond
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(1) A bond shall not be held invalid because of any irregularity if it was taken by a legally authorized official and states the place of appearance and the amount of bail.(2) If no day, or an impossible day, is stated in a bond for the defendant’s appearance before a trial court…
Fla. Stat. § 903.33 Bail not discharged for certain defects
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The liability of a surety shall not be affected by his or her lack of any qualifications required by law, any agreement not expressed in the undertakings, or the failure of the defendant to join in the bond.
Fla. Stat. § 903.34 Who may admit to bail
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In criminal actions instituted or pending in any state court, bonds given by defendants before trial until appeal shall be approved by a committing trial court judge or the sheriff. Appeal bonds shall be approved as provided in s. 924.15.
Fla. Stat. § 903.36 Guaranteed arrest bond certificates as cash bail
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(1) A guaranteed traffic arrest bond certificate provided for in s. 627.758 shall be accepted as bail in an amount not to exceed $1,000 for the appearance of the person named in the certificate in any court to answer for the violation of a provision of chapter 316 or a similar tr…