Your phone rang. Maybe it was late at night. Maybe it was the middle of the workday.
Someone told you that a person you love has been arrested.
Everything after that became a blur. The voice on the other end, the details you caught, the ones you didn’t. Now you’re trying to figure out what to do. You want one thing: to get them out.
We’ll walk you through exactly that.
We’ll also tell you something most websites skip entirely. What happens in the first 48 hours matters far more than the bail amount itself. Whether there’s a Lubbock criminal defense attorney in the room before bail is even set can determine how much this costs your family and how the entire case unfolds.
The clock starts the moment they’re arrested
While you’re making calls and trying to get information, something is already being set in motion.
Under Chapter 17 of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, every person arrested in Texas must be brought before a magistrate within 48 hours. This magistration hearing is where bail is set, conditions of release are established, and rights are read. It’s the first moment that shapes everything to come.
Most families don’t know this hearing is happening. They find out after it’s already over, after the number is already set, and after there was nothing they could do about it.
That number is not a fixed fact. It is a decision. And like most decisions, it can be influenced if the right person is in that room.
At the hearing, a magistrate considers:
| Factor | What it means in practice |
|---|---|
| The nature and seriousness of the charges | More serious charges typically mean higher bail, but “serious” leaves room for argument |
| Ties to the community | A person with steady work, family in the area, and roots here is less likely to run |
| Prior criminal history | Past failures to appear push bail significantly higher |
| Ability to pay | Texas law does not allow bail to function as a backdoor detention order for people who can’t afford it |
| Risk to the community | Whether releasing this person puts anyone else in danger |
A defense attorney who knows West Texas courts knows what magistrates in Abilene, Lubbock, Midland, and San Angelo are looking for. They can walk into that room and make a human case, not just a legal one.
Your loved one is not a file number. They have a job. They have a family. They have been part of this community. When those facts get presented clearly by someone the court respects, bail amounts come down.
Getting a defense attorney on the phone before that hearing is the single most valuable thing you can do right now.
📞 Call (325) 225-0143. We offer free consultations and can often provide same-day guidance.
What bail actually costs and where the money goes
Once bail is set, you have a few ways to pay it. Each comes with real trade-offs.
Cash bond
You pay the full bail amount directly to the court, in cash, cashier’s check, or money order depending on the county. If your loved one appears at every court date and the case concludes, that money comes back to you minus any administrative fees.
Felony bail in Texas regularly lands at $25,000, $50,000, or well beyond that. Most working families in West Texas don’t have that sitting in a bank account.
Surety bond
A licensed bail bondsman posts the full bail amount on your behalf. You pay them a fee, typically around 10% of the total bail, and that money is gone. It is not held. It is not returned if the charges are dropped. It is not refunded if your loved one is found not guilty. It is the cost of the service.
The bondsman takes on the financial risk. If the defendant misses court, the bondsman is on the hook for the full bail amount and has every financial motive to track them down. Co-signers are usually required. Collateral such as a vehicle or property may be requested depending on the circumstances.
✓ Refundable
✕ Never returned
Conditional
Equity at risk
This is why the magistration hearing matters so much for your family’s finances.
Consider this hypothetical: a first-time defendant in Taylor County with a steady oil field job, no record, a wife and two kids at home is arrested on a felony charge. No attorney at the magistration hearing. The magistrate sets bail at $75,000. The family calls a bondsman. $7,500 gone, non-refundable, before the case has even started.
Now run that same situation with a defense attorney in the room. The attorney walks the magistrate through the man’s eight years at the same company, his deep roots in the county, his family, his clean history. The magistrate sets bail at $20,000.
Bondsman’s fee: $2,000
What happens after the arrest
The conditions of release are not optional
When a magistrate grants bail, they almost always attach conditions. These are not suggestions. They are legal requirements. Breaking any one of them, even unintentionally, can mean an immediate warrant, re-arrest, and forfeiture of everything posted.
Common conditions include:
Before you co-sign a bond for someone
Co-signing a bail bond is not a formality. It is a financial and legal commitment with real consequences.
Getting them home is step one. Keeping their life intact is the job.
Bail gets your loved one out of a cell. It does not make the charges disappear.
Every count is still on record. Every court date is still coming. The decisions made in the weeks and months ahead, who takes the case, how they approach it, whether they fight or accept whatever the prosecutor puts on the table, will determine what life looks like when this is over.
Most families exhaust themselves getting their loved one out and figure they’ll deal with the legal side later. By the time later arrives, evidence has gone stale, witnesses have moved on, and the defense is playing catch-up.
The sooner a defense attorney is involved, the more they can do. Not just at trial, but at every stage before it gets there.
At Keith & Lorfing, we handle both sides of this. We show up at the magistration hearing to fight for a fair bail amount. We argue the conditions of release. We investigate the case while the facts are still fresh. We engage prosecutors early. If the case needs to go to trial, we go.
Our managing partner Russell Lorfing was a federal prosecutor in Lubbock. He spent years building cases from the government’s side and knows exactly how they think, what they’re looking for, and where the openings are. That experience is a direct advantage for your family from the very first hearing.
Our founding partner Trey Keith has lived in West Texas for over 25 years. Of counsel Joel Wilks is a fourth-generation West Texan. Of counsel Christopher Solis grew up in far west Texas. Our attorneys could have taken positions at large firms in Dallas, Houston, or Washington. They chose to come back here because this is home and these are their people.
Some of our former law partners are now judges and elected district attorneys in this region. When we say we know these courts, we mean it in a way most firms never can.
We have completed over 500 jury trials between us. We offer free consultations and will fight for your family with everything we have.
📞 Call (325) 225-0143 or reach us online. The sooner you call, the more we can do.
Bail Hearing Happens
Questions families ask us most
What if I can’t afford the bondsman’s fee?
Some bondsmen offer payment plans or accept collateral in lieu of the full cash premium. More importantly, if a defense attorney argues the bail amount down at the magistration hearing, that 10% fee shrinks automatically. A $10,000 bail is a $1,000 bondsman’s fee. Fighting the number on the front end is almost always better than scrambling on the back end.
Is any of the bondsman’s fee refundable?
None of it. It is a non-refundable service fee, the cost of the bondsman assuming the financial risk. It does not come back if the charges are dropped the next day. It does not come back after an acquittal. That money is spent, which is exactly why it’s worth fighting the bail amount before the fee is ever paid.
How long until they’re actually released after bail is posted?
A few hours to up to 24 hours, depending on the facility. Large jails tend to move faster. Smaller county jails run leaner. Nights and weekends slow everything down. Post the bond and prepare to wait.
Can bail conditions be changed after they’re set?
Yes. An attorney can file a motion to modify conditions if circumstances have changed, such as a job requiring travel or a family medical situation. The court holds a hearing and may grant the modification if the argument is sound.
Can bail be denied entirely in Texas?
For certain serious offenses, including capital murder and some violent felonies, a judge can deny bail outright. Bail may also be denied if the court finds the defendant poses an immediate danger to the community or is a serious flight risk. An attorney can challenge a denial, but it is an uphill fight.
What if the person gets re-arrested while out on bail?
The original bond is likely forfeited. A new bail hearing happens on the new charges. The court’s willingness to grant bail at all, and the amount, will almost certainly be less favorable the second time.
