Saratoga County Correctional Facility Inmate Bail & Bonds
Saratoga County bail and bond: pay any hour at the Ballston Spa jail
Anyone held in Saratoga County is at the Saratoga County Correctional Facility, 6010 County Farm Road, Ballston Spa, which takes bail at any time. See whether your relative is in custody, and the amount due, on Saratoga County Inmate Search. For court dates, the Saratoga County Court clerk answers at 518-451-8840.
Can bail be paid at the Ballston Spa jail in the middle of the night?
Yes. The Saratoga County Correctional Facility at 6010 County Farm Road takes bail at any time. The jail, which Sheriff Jeffrey R. Brown oversees, has room for 255 people and about 80 correctional staff.
Before you drive, look up the person on Saratoga County Inmate Search to confirm the booking and the exact amount. Payment has to match that amount to the dollar.
What forms of payment does the jail accept?
Exact cash, a certified bank check, or a credit card. A certified check must be made out to the Saratoga County Sheriff. Personal checks and business checks are refused, even when they are large.
Since the amount must be exact, bring that sum in cash or a certified check for it. Keep the receipt the jail hands you.
Can I pay by card from my kitchen table?
Cash bail can be paid by credit or debit card online through GovPayNet. The Sheriff's website explains the steps. Use only that official route.
One rule surprises families. A receipt for a remote card payment is made out to the defendant, and at the end of the case only the defendant can collect any money returned. Plan for that if the person paying is not the defendant.
Is a bondsman allowed in Saratoga County?
Yes. The jail says bail may be posted through a bail bondsman of your choice. A bail bond from a licensed agent costs a premium instead of the full amount.
The agent is licensed by the state Department of Financial Services. That office takes complaints at 800-342-3736.
What can a bondsman charge on a $10,000 bond?
No more than $860. The formula is 10% of the first $3,000 ($300) plus 8% of the next $7,000 ($560). Any amount over $10,000 would add 6% of the excess.
An agent that asks for a fee to find you a bondsman, or insists you use a certain lawyer, is breaking the rules. Collateral should be reasonable, and the agent must return it within 45 days after the bond is discharged.
Does the Sheriff decide the bail amount?
The Sheriff's Office runs the jail but does not choose bail. A judge does that at arraignment, usually within about 24 hours of the arrest, after hearing the prosecutor and the defense lawyer.
Bail has no statewide chart. The judge decides on release, release with conditions, bail, or bail plus conditions.
What if the arrest happens in Saratoga Springs?
Saratoga Springs City Court, 474 Broadway, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866, handles misdemeanors and arraigns people charged with felonies. It is open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays at 518-451-8780.
Arrests elsewhere in the county begin in the nearest town or village court. A city, town or village court cannot order release or bail for a class A felony or for someone with two earlier felony convictions.
Where does a felony case go next?
Saratoga County Court is at 30 McMaster Street, Building 3, Ballston Spa, NY 12020, open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The clerk's main line is 518-451-8840.
Call the clerk for the next date and the judge's part.
How do we get a free lawyer?
The Saratoga County Public Defender is at 40 McMaster Street, Ballston Spa, NY 12020, open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Phone 518-884-4795. The office takes criminal court, Family Court and parole matters. An Application for Counsel is on the county website.
At arraignment, tell the judge the family cannot pay. You are entitled to a lawyer whenever the court considers or reviews release.
What are all the ways the judge can let him post bail?
CPL 520.10 gives nine forms: cash; an insurance company bail bond; secured, partially secured and unsecured surety bonds; secured, partially secured and unsecured appearance bonds; and a credit card. The judge must pick at least three, including an unsecured or partially secured surety bond.
A credit card form may carry a reasonable administrative fee.
Does anyone get released with no bail at all?
Most people charged with offenses outside the CPL 510.10(4) list must be released on their own promise unless that will not reasonably bring them back. The judge then uses non-money conditions. A defendant can also ask for nominal bail.
The listed charges include violent felonies, class A felonies, sex offenses, crimes that caused a death and felonies committed on probation. There the judge may hold a felony defendant in the Sheriff's custody.
Can an officer send him home with a ticket?
For most arrests, yes. The officer must issue an appearance ticket unless the case is a class A to D felony or fits another exception such as an open warrant, a missed court date in the past two years, a family-offense or sex-offense charge, or refusal to confirm identity.
The return date is normally within 20 days. If it is skipped, a warrant can follow.
Which facility takes a detained 16-year-old from Saratoga County?
Serious charges against 16- and 17-year-olds go to the Youth Part of County Court, and the law bars holding them in a jail with adults. Saratoga County youths who are detained go to the Capital District Juvenile Secure Detention Facility in Colonie, which Albany County operates for Albany, Schenectady, Saratoga and Rensselaer.
Parents must be notified soon after the arrest. The County Court clerk at 518-451-8840 can supply the hearing date.
What if he misses court?
The bail is forfeited, but the order can be undone if he appears before the final adjournment with a good excuse. Otherwise the District Attorney has 120 days to proceed against bond signers.
Cash can be applied to the county's use after the final adjournment or 45 days after notice, whichever is later. A remission request must be made within a year.
How does a refund work?
The court returns cash bail to the payer when the case ends, except 3% if the defendant is convicted. Carry the receipt and photo identification. A notarized statement replaces a lost receipt, and a notarized affidavit assigns the money.
Deposits to a jail account for commissary or phones are not bail. They do not count toward release.
Saratoga County bail contacts
- Jail
- Saratoga County Correctional Facility, 6010 County Farm Road, Ballston Spa, NY 12020; bail taken at any hour
- Bond help
- Saratoga County bail and bond instructions
- Custody lookup
- Saratoga County Inmate Search
- County Court
- 30 McMaster Street, Building 3, Ballston Spa, NY 12020; 518-451-8840
- Saratoga Springs
- City Court, 474 Broadway; 518-451-8780
- Public defender
- 40 McMaster Street, Ballston Spa; 518-884-4795
- Bondsman complaints
- Department of Financial Services, 800-342-3736
Payment rules and hours are set by the Sheriff and the courts, and a judge may change any order. Read the receipt you get, and ask your lawyer about your own case.
Pay an Inmate's Bond Online
Saratoga County Correctional Facility uses a service called allpaid (also known as GovPayNet) for paying an inmate's Bail Bond online for an inmate.
Register with them online or call them at 877-392-2455 for assistance.
To make a payment, you will need the following:
- Court of Jurisdiction
- Payment Amount
- The Pay Location Code (PLC #) if you can get it. Call 518-885-2480 to ask for this.
- Name of Arrestee/Defendant for whom payment is being made
- Arrestee/Defendant's Date of Birth
- Arrestee/Defendant's Booking Number
Saratoga County Correctional Facility
Address:
6010 County Farm Road
Ballston Spa, NY 12020
Phone:
518-885-2480
Does Saratoga County have bail?
When is bail set in Saratoga County New York?
Does Saratoga County have bail?
Yes, but the state of New York only applies bail in violent or felony cases. Non-violent and most misdemeanor cases always qualify for release on own recognizance. Tioga County recognizes most types of bonds.
When is bail set in Saratoga County New York?
Bail for lesser offenses is set at the time of booking. If bail is required for felony cases, it will be set by a judge at the first court hearing. This hearing, also called an arraignment, generally takes place on the next available court date excluding weekends and holidays.
How Does Bail Work in Saratoga County?
What is Bail?
Bail is what the arrested in Saratoga County must pay or do to stay out of jail until the first court appearance.
The agreement to bail acts as a promise that the arrested will return to court for court dates and trial. Bail usually refers to a dollar amount, but bail can also mean something that has to be done, or a condition such as reporting to an officer of the court, a curfew, restraining orders or attending a treatment program.
Bail is usually a significant enough amount of money and/or condition that the person will be negatively impacted and has incentive to return to court and not flee. A flight risk usually means that the person would flee the area, and not necessary that they are going to take an airplane.
If a judge in Saratoga County feels that the arrested will return to court for further proceedings, the arrested could be released under a conditional release without needing to pay bail money. This is called Released on Own Recognizance, or ROR.
Conditions for ROR might be to obey all court orders and laws, maintain contact with the lawyer, report changes in residence or have no contact with the victim. Family support will show the court that there are people who will make sure that the defendant makes it to court.
If the judge or bail schedule determines that the defendant would be a danger to the public if they were released, bail can be denied, and the person will be detained in the Saratoga County Correctional Facility until the case is resolved or goes to trial.
Bail can be denied if the defendant did not comply with bail conditions from a previous arrest. Bail is usually denied in cases of violent offenses.
What is the difference between Bail and Bond?
Bail and bond are used interchangeably to mean the same thing but technically, they are different. The bail is the amount to be paid and a bond is a signed document promising payment of the bail amount with certain conditions. Think of a bond as a loan to pay for the bail.
The bond payment is always written to the court in your municipality, Saratoga County or district directly and does not go through the defendant. Chances of obtaining a bond from a bond company or clerk of court are better if family is involved.
The thought of being in jail can cause the arrested to panic and try to secure a bond immediately.
DO NOT panic and take the time to understand all the options.
More courts are now trying to work with defendants to make bail work and might provide non-monetary options or even reduce the bail.
Payments to a bond company are not refundable. It is a long process to get back property title or money that was given to the clerk of court or bondsperson to secure the bond. This could put your loved ones into a difficult financial situation.
Another reason not to unnecessarily rush into securing a bond is that if the court notes that you came up with the money to pay a bond company, they may assume you have resources to pay a defense attorney and decline public defense.
On the other hand, as anyone who has ever been involved in their criminal defense understands, fighting your case while ‘out on the streets’ gives you a much better chance of either winning, or getting a more favorable sentence.
What are the different types of bonds in Saratoga County?
Based on a review of information from the arrest, the judge or bail officer will determine and notify the accused of which types of bonds are available to them.
To describe the types of bonds, let’s use an example of buying your neighbor’s car. Your neighbor decides the price of the car and how they would be paid.
Similarly, the court (meaning a police or bail officer, clerk of court, bail magistrate or judge) determines the bail amount and how it would be paid.
Here are different options that the seller of the car or the court might consider:
You could pay full asking price for the car in cash. This is similar to paying cash bail. The full amount of bail would be paid to the town or county clerk or at the jail. Cash, cashier’s checks and credit cards are usually accepted.
You could sign an agreement on your own or with another person to pay for the car at a future date knowing that your neighbor would know where to find you if you stopped payment. This would be similar to a cash bond or a personal recognizance (PR) bond which are bonds to where someone representing the defendant signs paperwork promising to pay the bail amount if the defendant does not show up to court. There is no money due up front.
If the defendant does not show up, the full amount of the bail will be due to the court and the people who signed the paperwork will be responsible for paying the court and the court will send the sheriff’s department to arrest you.
Cash bonds and PR bonds are types of unsecured bonds because you are not securing it with any money down. In bond terms, a surety is a person who will be responsible for making sure that you will show to court and will be responsible to pay the bond if the arrested person does not show up.
Surety can be family, friend or a bondsperson. Your attorney cannot act as a surety.
You can put a deposit down for your neighbor’s car and sign an agreement that the car will be paid off at a later date. Cash percentage in lieu of bonds is when the defendant pays a percentage of the bail amount, usually 10%, to the court which then holds the money until the case is over.
The amount is returned to the person who paid the 10% after the case is over. In most cases, the full amount is not returned if there are court fees or fines due. This is a type of surety bond if another person signs the bond paperwork.
You could sign an agreement that if the car were not paid off, that your neighbor would get your house or something of value.
A property bond is a bond that the courts might consider in which the bond is pledged in land or home real estate (mobile homes are not accepted).
Usually, the property must be in the same state as the courts, and it must be worth at least 1 ½ - 2 times the amount of the bond.
There are multiple court fees involved to execute a property bond with the courts and a tedious process to get the property deed back. This is another type of surety bond if another person or a bond company is used to secure the bond.
You could also go to a local bank and take out a car loan offering property or anything of value for collateral. You may get someone to co-sign on the loan and offer their property. The ban charges fees, interest and could keep your property if you did not pay the loan back, or even on time.
A professional bondsperson makes money, at least 10% of the bond amount by providing you with a “loan” called a bond. The percent that they charge is fixed by the state and cannot be negotiated. The defendant or surety does not get that 10% or more back even if the terms of the bail are met.
With a property bond, the property deed would need to be signed over to the bondsperson and everyone on the deed would need to be involved.
Since the bondsperson signed off, to be responsible that you show to court as your surety, they can send a bounty hunter to bring you to court if you flee. A bondsperson does not have to give you a bond if the defendant seems to be too much of a risk.
Ask the bondsperson to explain all the costs: percentage, fees or court fees. There is never a reason to rush through signing the paperwork with a bond company. Make sure that everything told to you is in writing and that you understand what you are signing. Ask questions, and if you feel rushed or don’t understand the contract with the bond company, you might want to call another one.
(There have been phone scams where a bond company calls and informs a person that their family member has been arrested and they ask for financial information. A bondsperson will not call asking for money without involvement of the arrested.)
Does Saratoga County have bail?
New York only applies bail in violent or felony cases. Non-violent and most misdemeanor cases qualify for release on own recognizance.
What kind of bonds are accepted in Saratoga County?
Saratoga County recognizes most types of bonds.
Who can set bail in Saratoga County?
Bail is set by officers during booking for misdemeanor offenses. A judge sets bail for felony arrests.
When is bail set in New York?
Bail for lesser offenses is set at the time of booking. If bail is required for felony cases, it will be set by a judge at the first court hearing. This hearing, also called an arraignment, generally takes place on the next available court date excluding weekends and holidays.
Can I get the bail or bond reduced in Saratoga County New York?
Yes, if bail has been assessed, your attorney may file a motion to have it reduced.
In Saratoga County New York, who can pay bail for me?
The person posting bail should be a relative or close friend, called a surety, because they are promising and taking responsibility that you will return to court to get their money back.
A surety is not responsible for court fees or paying off personal debts for the defendant. A professional bondsperson who is approved by the State of New York could be the surety and execute a bond to the court on your behalf.
Can bail be paid online in Saratoga County New York?
Yes, New York does offer online bail payment. Please contact the jail for specific information on how to pay bail. Go to the Saratoga County Correctional Facility for more information about the jails in Saratoga County.
What options are there to pay bail in Saratoga County New York?
Most all jail and courts accept cash, a cashier or bankers’ check. Some accept a credit card with fees. Please contact the jail for specific information on what methods of payment are accepted. Go to the Saratoga County Correctional Facility for more information about posting bail in Saratoga County.
Will I get all my bond money back in New York?
Bail money is returned to the person who paid the bail; in whole or in part once the case is finished. There may be fees, restitution (money to pay for damage caused by the crime) or fines that come out of that amount. If you used a bondsperson, you would not get your 10% back. Property is returned by the court or bondsperson after the appropriate requests and formal paperwork are completed with the court.
Can I get bail or a bond with no money down in Saratoga County?
Most non-violent crimes do not require bail. If bail is assessed cash, or a minimum down payment, will be required.
A cash bond or a personal recognizance (PR) bond are bonds where someone representing the defendant signs paperwork promising to pay the bail amount if the defendant does not show up to court. There is no money due up front.
If the defendant does not show up, the full amount of the bail will be due to the court and the people who signed the paperwork will be responsible for paying the court and the court will send the sheriff’s department to arrest you.
Cash bonds and PR bonds are types of unsecured bonds because you are not securing it with any money down. In bond terms, a surety is a person who will be responsible to make sure that you will show to court and will be responsible to pay the bond if the arrested person does not show up. A surety can be family, friend or a bondsperson. Your attorney cannot act as a surety.
What are the least expensive and affordable bail bonds in New York?
The Saratoga County Correctional Facility or court in this jurisdiction can provide you with a list of approved and licensed bond companies, but they cannot recommend a specific company. You are not obligated to use the first company available and can call several companies to compare what kind of bonds that the bondsperson is willing to execute.
The percentage of bail that the bond company can charge is set, usually at 10%, by the state and cannot be negotiated.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I pay a Saratoga County Correctional Facility inmate's bond online?
Yes, you can pay a Saratoga County Correctional Facility inmate's bond online using a third-party service called 'allpaid'. The instructions are easy... From their website, look up Saratoga County Correctional Facility or Saratoga County, input the inmate's name, and then use your credit or debit card to deposit the bond amount. As soon as the payment is processed and the information is sent to the Saratoga County Correctional Facility, the jail will begin the release process. You do not have to be present for all of this to take place. Learn more about how to bail or bond out an inmate in the Saratoga County Correctional Facility, call allpaid directly at 877-392-2455, or call the jail at 518-885-2480.