Keep Bailing

Typical Hollywood? It’s sounds like a scene from a movie as LAPD officers cuff a man dressed as Spiderman and place him in a squad car.

According to the Los Angeles Times, LAPD patrol officers received a call reporting an incident between a tourist and a a man in a Spiderman costume. When they arrived, they encountered four different people dressed Spidey.  

“They stopped one, it wasn’t him,” LAPD Lt. Beverly Lewis said. “They stopped the second, and it was the suspect.”

The victim, who said he was hit in the face and arms, refused to press charges. But Lewis said that when they discovered the warrants, he was booked at the LAPD Hollywood Station Jail. Christopher Loomis, 39, was being held on outstanding misdemeanor warrants in lieu of $5,500 bail.

I think this LA Times photo is priceless; look at the woman’s face: Read more »

In more celebrity arrest news, Mel Gibson’s conviction for drunk driving was finally expunged this week.  He has met the requirements of his probation after his 2006 drunk driving arrest.

However, in an attempt to uncover what some are saying was a media leak from the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department, authorities have discovered two calls were made to Harvey Levin of TMZ the exact day of Gibson’s arrest. 

One of the arresting Sheriff Deputies, James Mee stated he did nothing wrong and declined to comment any further. But phone records Read more »

Back in June, Los Angeles County Sheriff threatened to close Pitchess Jail in less than a week. Well, here we are three months later and Pitchess Detention Center remains open. Tonight, Sheriff Baca indicates the Department has found $25million in savings and revenues. According to the Los Angeles Times:

“There will be no jail closures, and no portion of a jail will be closed,” said Steve Whitmore, the department’s spokesman. “There will no reductions in services in unincorporated areas and no reductions in detectives.”

Instead, the department will use Read more »

The Los Angeles Police Department has announced that an arrest has been made in conjuction with a break in at the home of Lindsay Lohan.

Nicholas Prugo, 18, of Calabasas, is believed to have been one of a group of people who were caught on tape entering Lohan’s home last month. LAPD officer Rosario Herrera says detectives made the arrested on Thursday morning on suspicion of felony burglary. Prugo’s bail was set at  $20,000.

Officers believe that Prugo is Read more »

Latest Swine Flu: Orange County Jail

Throughout California, swine flu is effecting jail populations. Last week, we reported quarantines at San Diego jails and swine flu outbreaks at Los Angeles County jails. 

On Tuesday, an Orange County Superior Court Judge ruled that there is legal justification to keep the Orange County Jail under quarantine to control the outbreak of swine flu at that jail.

So far 25 inmates Read more »

According to the LA Times and the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department, 20 inmates  at Los Angeles County jails have been infected with the swine flu. Most of the inmates that were infected reside in the Castaic Pitchess Jail.

All inmates that were diagnosed with the swine flu were placed in isolation, similar to that of San Diego jails. There they will be receiving tests and monitoried for seven days. All infected inmates are not receiving visitors. Two of the infected inmates have been taken to a local hospital and are said to be in good condition.

This is not the first reported case of swine flu at the Los Angeles County jail Read more »

Last week, in a letter to the Board of Supervisors, Sheriff Lee Baca proposed closing the minimum security jail at the Pitchess Detention Center in order to mitigate $79 million in losses to the department due to budget cuts.

The Los Angeles Daily News article states:

The proposal, if ultimately approved, would reduce the amount of time county-sentenced inmates spend in jail and potentially could increase jail violence, Read more »

We hear it almost everyday: “What’s your rate?” or ”Can I get a bond at 5%?”

We know when someone calls and starts with those questions, we probably aren’t going to write the bond. How do we know? We know because the legal bail rates in California are clear. The people we deal with for bail are concerned with our professionalism and how quickly and efficiently we can get their situation settled. They aren’t looking to do business illegally.

So why do people who need bail call with such questions? One word: “Undercutting.” This is the term used for the practice of offering illegally low rates on bail. It’s a major problem Read more »

“What’s Wrong With Bail in Los Angeles?” I’m thinking about making this a category here at KeepBailing. Bail is a great Constitutional Right. The system is really quite good and costs nothing to John Q. Public. Release on Own Recognizance is another story…

Recently, I had a call from a woman who’s brother was arrested and was at the Van Nuys Jail. He had been in an accident while driving under the influence of alcohol. His bail was $30,000 and their mother agreed to bail him out. As our bail agent arrived at Van Nuys (and was illegally approached by street solicitors looking to cut him a 5% deal on a bond – also illegal, but that’s another post), he went into the jail with bond in hand and the jailer told him, “Sorry, the guy just had an O.R. approved.”

My guy tells the jailer, “Well, I have a bond, wouldn’t that be better for everyone?”

“Sorry, gotta O.R. him,” the agent was told. (Note that I recognize that the officer was doing what he’s told to do.)

You might be thinking, that’s great for the defendant and his family; they don’t have to pay. Well, not so fast. What are the facts about O.R. versus bail when it comes to appearance in court? Read more »

When you think of jail, you probably don’t picture one that has the aesthetics of a high profile, ultra modern building. Neither did I until recently. 

Last week, I received an email with various photos of a building – each photo daring me to guess what was pictured. A university? A modern gym? Museum? No, the email told me, it was a Cook County Correctional Center in Chicago. Suspicious, Read more »