Booking Process Palmdale, California
When a person is arrested in Palmdale, California, he or she will be transferred to the Palmdale Police Station for the booking process. The main purpose of booking is to establish the true identity of the arrestee. The person will go through a series of procedures, such as fingerprinting (livescan), mug shot, and personal information check. The police officer (deputy Jailer) will then enter the data into the main statewide database system to see if the person has any previous criminal record as well as any additional wants or warrants. Booking time usually takes 4 – 6 hours, but it can take longer depending on the workload of the local sheriff station.

What’s the purpose of bail?
The purpose of bail is to ensure the accused person will make all required court appearances. The amount of bail can be high or low. If the charges are serious, the bail can be high in thousands of dollars. Bail is not used to punish the defendant since he/she can get the money back (if cash bail is posted) after the case is finished. Most sheriff and police stations accept cash, money orders, and traveler’s checks as well as bail bonds from an accredited and licensed bail agent.

Types of Bail
• Cash Bail
Cash bail means the person pays the whole bail in cash. The cash amount will be returned to the defendant when the case is closed (in approximately twelve weeks); on the other hand, if the person fails to appear in court, the amount is forfeited to the court system.
• Surety Bail, also known as bail bond
Surety bail means a bail agent, usually backed by a surety insurance company, puts up the whole amount of bail to court for the defendant’s release. To minimize risk, some bail bond companies may request collateral from the accused person.
• Citation Release
In some misdemeanor cases, a police officer will issue a citation to the accused person instead of sending him to jail.
• Release on Own Recognizance (R.O.R)
In some cases, a judge may decide to release the person on his own recognizance. The person doesn’t have to pay the bail but still has to show up for court.
Please Note: Failure to appear will lead to a warrant for their arrest.
• Property Bond
If the arrestee doesn’t have enough cash for the bail, he can post his property as a bond. In this case, if the accused person decides to flee or skip bail, the state will foreclose on the property.
Please Note: Property bonds must go directly through court, they cannot be filed with the local sheriff.

How do bail bonds work?
When a judge determines how much the bail is, the arrestee can post bail and be released from any holding facility. If the suspect can pay the whole bail, the person can get it back after the case is over. If the defendant cannot pay the full amount to the court, he or she can contact a bail bond company for help. In most cases, the accused person only needs to pay 10% of the whole bail to the bail agency. The 10% rate is considered an annual premium rate and is renewable. The bail bond premium is not refundable.

Can the arrestee’s friend or family member help in the bail bond process?
The answer is yes. The arrestee’s friend or family member can become the co-signers for the person’s bail bond, also known as the indemnitor. Under the typical bail bond agreement, the indemnitor accepts all financial responsibility, if the accused person decides to bail out or fails to appear in court.