James A. Karnes Corrections Center Inmate Bail & Bonds
Franklin County bail and bond: Columbus jails, the 24-hour kiosks, and the clerks who take payment
Adults arrested in Columbus and the rest of Franklin County are held in the Franklin County Sheriff's corrections centers: the James A. Karnes Corrections Center, 2551 Fisher Road, Columbus, OH 43204, and Correctional Center II, 2460 Jackson Pike, Columbus, OH 43223. Both answer at 614-525-3368. Search for a person on the Franklin County Inmate Search before you call. Two live-video kiosks at the Karnes center take bond payments 24 hours a day, every day, and the Municipal Court Clerk's Office at 375 S. High Street handles the paperwork for misdemeanors.
Which Franklin County jail is my relative in?
There are two corrections centers. The James A. Karnes Corrections Center is at 2551 Fisher Road, and Correctional Center II is at 2460 Jackson Pike. The Sheriff's main office is downtown at 373 S. High Street, 614-525-3333.
The Franklin County Inmate Search shows each current inmate, the charges, the case numbers, the visiting location, and the next court date. To ask a person on the phone, the prisoner information line is 614-525-3340.
Can I pay a bond at night or on a weekend?
Yes, in many cases. Two live-agent kiosks at the Karnes center are available twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. You scan a government photo ID, connect by audio and video to a deputy clerk, review the bond contract, and sign on the screen. The documents are emailed to the corrections facility.
The kiosks take credit cards or cash. A cash bond is the full amount plus state fees. An appearance bond is 10 percent of the bond amount plus state fees.
What is the Municipal Court bond schedule for Ohio residents?
Franklin County Municipal Court uses a standard schedule for most misdemeanors when a judge has not set an amount. For Ohio residents: $500 for an unclassified or first-degree misdemeanor, $400 for a second-degree, $300 for a third-degree, $200 for a fourth-degree, and $100 for a minor misdemeanor.
Residents may use cash, surety, or appearance bonds.
What if the person lives outside Ohio?
Non-residents face higher figures: $2,000 for an unclassified or first-degree misdemeanor, $1,500 for a second-degree, $1,000 for a third-degree, $500 for a fourth-degree, and $100 for a minor misdemeanor. Only cash or surety bonds are allowed.
A non-resident who shows the Clerk proof of being a student or having a job in Ohio is released at the resident amounts.
Which charges are not on that schedule?
The standard schedule leaves out certain cases, including domestic violence, assault, menacing by stalking, sexually oriented offenses, and certain OVI charges. A judge sets the amount for those.
Even for scheduled charges, the schedule applies only unless a judge sets a different amount.
Where is the Municipal Court Clerk, and what are the phone numbers?
The Clerk's Office is in the Municipal Court Building, 375 S. High Street, Columbus, OH 43215. The Criminal/Traffic Division answers at 614-645-8186, and Criminal/Traffic Accounting at 614-645-6903. Clerk administration is 614-645-8006 and keeps hours from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays.
The Clerk processes prisoner release transactions twenty-four hours a day.
Where are felony bonds paid?
Felony cases belong to the Court of Common Pleas. The Clerk of Courts is at 373 S. High Street, 614-525-3600, and General Division payments, including bonds, are taken at 345 South High Street, 1st Floor. Accepted forms are cash, money orders, and cashier's checks. Criminal payments may also be made by certified check payable to the Franklin County Clerk of Courts.
Confirm which address and window the clerk wants before you travel. Bond refunds are mailed after the court approves them.
What are the four bond types in Franklin County?
Surety: you pay a bonding agent a 10 percent fee that is not refunded, and the agent pays the state fees. Cash: the full amount plus state fees, and the amount comes back if every date is attended, but the state fees do not. Appearance: 10 percent plus state fees paid directly to the court, with 90 percent of the deposit returned. Recognizance: the person is released on a signature with no payment.
A person who skips court after a recognizance release may face a separate charge.
How soon will a judge hear the case in Columbus?
Ohio law requires an initial bail hearing no later than the second court day after arrest. The Municipal Court has two criminal arraignment courtrooms, two traffic arraignment courtrooms, and handles felony arraignments.
A person still held without a lawyer gets a second hearing two court days later, with a lawyer appointed at state expense if the person is indigent.
How do I choose a bail agent in Columbus?
Use only an agent with an Ohio license from the Department of Insurance, 1-614-644-2665. The agent must charge the filed, approved premium rate and disclose expense fees. The Municipal Court describes the surety fee as nonrefundable.
Ohio rules bar an agent from requiring you to sign over real estate title and from soliciting at jails or courthouses.
Can I use property as security?
Ohio law allows real estate or securities. The owner signs a sworn statement that describes the property, the liens on it, and other bonds the owner supports. The court must find that the owner can cover at least the entire bond, and attorneys cannot serve as sureties.
Call the Clerk at 614-525-3600 about the forms that the Common Pleas court wants for a felony.
My relative was arrested by Columbus police. Where do I look?
Use the Franklin County Inmate Search. It shows current inmates at both corrections centers, whatever agency made the arrest. If the booking has not appeared, call 614-525-3368 or the prisoner information line at 614-525-3340.
Municipal Court cases from Columbus arrests are heard at 375 S. High Street.
Why does the record show no bond?
A judge may not have set the amount yet. In a domestic violence, assault, or sexually oriented case the schedule does not apply, so the person waits for a judge. Real denial of bail is allowed only for capital offenses and for felonies where the person poses a substantial risk of serious physical harm, proven at a hearing by clear and convincing evidence.
A hold from another county or a probation hold can also stop release.
How and when do I get bond money back?
Ask the clerk. Cash bond money and appearance deposits are returned after the case ends and the court approves, but state fees are not returned. Refund checks are mailed about seven to ten business days after the papers are processed.
The person named on the bond can ask to hold the check for pickup with a government photo ID.
Does Franklin County have a public defender?
Yes. The Franklin County Public Defender is at 373 S. High Street, 12th Floor, Columbus, OH 43215, 614-525-3194. It represents people who cannot afford a lawyer in criminal, juvenile, and custody cases. Municipal interviews run Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.
Ask the judge for an appointed lawyer at the first hearing if you have not reached the office yet.
Where are juveniles held in Franklin County?
The Juvenile Intervention Center is a secure detention facility for youth awaiting court hearings. The Juvenile Branch of the Common Pleas Court lists 373 S. High Street, 4th Floor, and 614-525-3628.
Juvenile records are private, so the adult search will not show a child. A public defender interviews juvenile clients Tuesday and Thursday afternoons.
What if the person misses a Columbus hearing after bonding out?
The judge can issue a warrant, the bond can be forfeited, and failing to appear can be a separate offense.
Call the Criminal/Traffic Division at 614-645-8186 right away.
Can Franklin County commissary money count as bond?
No. Commissary and phone deposits do not release anyone. Bond money goes to the Clerk or the kiosk.
The Sheriff's corrections page says that any bond information must come from the Clerk of Courts.
How can a Columbus family recognize a bail scam?
A real kiosk session happens at a corrections center with a deputy clerk on video, and the Clerk's website is the place to check. Nobody will ask for gift cards or app transfers.
Call 614-645-8186 yourself.
Key contacts for Franklin County bond questions
- County jails
- James A. Karnes Corrections Center, 2551 Fisher Road, Columbus, OH 43204; Correctional Center II, 2460 Jackson Pike, Columbus, OH 43223; 614-525-3368; Franklin County jails
- Bond guide
- Bail and bond guide
- Sheriff's Office
- 373 S. High Street, Columbus, OH 43215; 614-525-3333; prisoner information 614-525-3340
- Bond kiosks
- Karnes Corrections Center, public and booking areas; 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
- Municipal Court Clerk
- 375 S. High Street, Columbus, OH 43215; Criminal/Traffic 614-645-8186; accounting 614-645-6903; administration 614-645-8006
- Clerk of Courts
- 373 S. High Street, Columbus, OH 43215; 614-525-3600; payments at 345 S. High Street, 1st Floor
- Public Defender
- 373 S. High Street, 12th Floor, Columbus, OH 43215; 614-525-3194
- Juvenile
- Juvenile Intervention Center; Juvenile Branch 614-525-3628
- Custody lookup
- Franklin County Inmate Search
- Insurance agents
- Ohio Department of Insurance, 1-614-644-2665
Schedules, kiosk services, fees, and phone lines can change. Confirm the amount and the payment route with the Clerk before you pay. Think of this page as a plain-language overview rather than legal advice.
How do Bail Bonds work at James A. Karnes Corrections Center
Franklin County Inmate Bail Bond Information
All questions regarding bail for inmates incarcerated in the Karnes or Jackson Pike Jails need to be directed to the Franklin County Court Clerk's office. You can reach them by phone by calling 614-525-3621.
James A. Karnes Corrections Center
Address:
2551 Fisher Road
Columbus, OH 43204
Phone:
614-525-3368
Frequently Asked Questions about Bail and Bonds in Franklin County
Does Franklin County have bail?
What kind of bonds are accepted in Franklin County?
Who can set bail in Franklin County?
When is bail set in Franklin County Ohio?
Does Franklin County have bail?
Yes, Franklin County recognizes most types of bonds.
What kind of bonds are accepted in Franklin County?
Bail in Franklin County is available in several different types including personal bond (aka own recognizance), cash bond, 10% bond, surety bond, and property bond.
Who can set bail in Franklin County?
A judge usually sets bond. In some counties the County Court has established a bail schedule, which outlines the bail for many non-violent or minor crimes. If a charge is not part of the bail schedule a hearing will be necessary.
When is bail set in Franklin County Ohio?
Bail is set in Ohio the first time the accused is brought into court. Although this hearing is set as soon as possible based on court availability, it can take up to 3 days not including weekends or holidays.
What is Bail?
Bail is what the arrested in Franklin 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 Franklin 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 James A. Karnes Corrections Center 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, Franklin 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 Franklin 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 bank 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 Franklin County have bail?
Yes, Franklin County recognizes most types of bonds.
What kind of bonds are accepted in Franklin County?
Bail in Franklin County is available in several different types including personal bond (aka own recognizance), cash bond, 10% bond, surety bond, and property bond.
Who can set bail in Franklin County?
A judge usually sets bond. In some counties the County Court has established a bail schedule, which outlines the bail for many non-violent or minor crimes. If a charge is not part of the bail schedule a hearing will be necessary.
When is bail set in Ohio?
Bail is set in Ohio the first time the accused is brought into court. Although this hearing is set as soon as possible based on court availability, it can take up to 3 days not including weekends or holidays.
Can I get the bail or bond reduced in Franklin County Ohio?
Yes, if there are extenuating circumstances, let the judicial officer know. The accused can ask for bail reduction or a change in bail conditions.
In Franklin County Ohio, 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 Ohio could be the surety and execute a bond to the court on your behalf.
Can bail be paid online in Franklin County Ohio?
Yes, Franklin County does offer online bail payment. In Ohio, bail payment is made to the Clerk of Court.
What options are there to pay bail in Franklin County Ohio?
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 James A. Karnes Corrections Center for more information about posting bail in Franklin County. An alternative would be to contact the Clerk of Court.
Will I get all my bond money back in Ohio?
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 Franklin County?
The judge or officer who sets bail determines which kind of bail will be an option for you, but a cash bond and PR bonds usually do not require cash down, though you might have to pay court fees.
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 Ohio?
The James A. Karnes Corrections Center 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.