Bail is a procedure within the criminal justice system whereby a person accused of unlawful conduct submits a certain amount of money to the court that acts as a surety of his or her release. The court remains in possession of the money during proceedings and trials relating to the defendant as a means of ensuring that the defendant observes court dates. If the defendant defaults agreements defined during the issuance of the bail, the money used in settling the bail agreement will revert to the court. Complex criminal justice system leads to the piling up of unprocessed case due to the length trial process. In this regard, recently arrested suspects may spends weeks or months locked up in remand cells as they wait their turn face the jury. Bail saves some suspected criminals, who are in fact innocent, from the agony of having to await their trial in remand cells (Emmerson et al., 2007). Upon payment of the agreed amount, such individuals can continue with day-to-day activities without the restrictions associated with remand cells.
Policies regarding the issuance of a bail restrict criminals eligible for release depending on the nature crime. In this regard, applications for bail among suspects charged with minor offenses have a high likelihood of success than in the case of serious crimes whereby application for a bail is subject to the decision of a judge. Depending on the severity of a crime, the judge may rule against the issuance of bail or demand large amounts of money for settling the bail (Haugen & Musser, 2009). In most countries, capital offenders such as murderers are not eligible for bails. Crimes such as rape or manslaughter attract require large sums of money to secure bail. Constitutional provisions regarding the issuance of a bail seeks to protect the rights of an individual, whether innocent or guilty of a criminal offence.
