Atascosa County Jail Inmate Bail & Bonds

Bail is a magistrate's job. Article 15.17 of the CCP gives the jail just 48 hours to bring each arrested adult before one. Jails may use a video hookup for this. The list of who can serve as one is long: justices of the peace, municipal judges, county judges, district judges and several more (CCP 2A.151).

Booking at 830-769-3434 can tell you when your person will be seen. In that short hearing, expect three things:

• The person hears the charge and the warnings, including the right to remain silent.
• The magistrate asks whether a court-appointed attorney is wanted, then helps complete that form.
• Bail gets decided within that same 48-hour window, using the least strict terms that would still work for this one person (CCP 17.028).

Any Class B misdemeanor or heavier charge requires a public safety report before the magistrate decides. Think of it as a record summary: it gives neither a risk rating nor a suggested amount (CCP 17.021, 17.022). Magistrates who handle felonies and jailable misdemeanors need state bail training first (CCP 17.024).

Texas law has bail bonds, backed by cash or by a surety, plus personal bonds, backed by a promise (CCP 17.01 to 17.03). In practice, Jourdanton families run into three forms:

• Cash bond. Somebody deposits the whole amount with the court. That money can return later if the person keeps showing up.
• Surety bond. Here a licensed bail company backs the full sum with the court. What the family pays that company is its fee, and it is not refunded.
• Personal bond. The person signs, pledging to be at every court date. No upfront cash is involved.

Any bond may carry rules. Two common ones are drug testing and staying away from the alleged victim. Drunk driving bonds may need an ignition interlock, which makes the driver blow clean before the engine starts. Article 17.441 requires one for intoxication manslaughter, intoxication assault, any second DWI, and a DWI where a child was riding along.

Some charges rule out a personal bond. These include a long list of violent crimes, a convicted felon with a gun, and a few kinds of protective order breach. Burglary, engaging in organized criminal activity and certain drug felonies form a separate group, where the trial judge must approve it (CCP 17.03).

Someone held on a ticket that carries only a fine may walk out with a written notice to appear instead of any bond (CCP 15.17(b)).

Texas uses no single statewide price list for bail. Every amount is picked person by person. When picking it, the magistrate must think about (CCP 17.15):

• Whether the amount will bring the accused back for court.
• Making sure bail is never used to oppress.
• What crime is charged and the facts claimed.
• How much money the accused really has.
• The safety of any victim, of police and of the community.
• Criminal record and citizenship status.

Article 17.033 sets the only dollar caps. They cover an arrest made with no warrant when probable cause stays undecided past the deadline. On a misdemeanor, the jail must release by the 24-hour mark, with bond no more than $5,000. On a felony, the release deadline is the 48-hour mark, with bond no more than $10,000. A person too broke to post those sums gets a personal bond.

In justice and municipal courts, fine-only Class C cases normally go on a personal bond (CCP 45A.107). To hear the actual figure set for your person, ring Booking at 830-769-3434.

The lockup sits with the Sheriff's Office at 1108 Campbell Avenue, Jourdanton, TX 78026. A simple order of steps:

1. Dial 830-769-3434, say you need Booking, then give the name from the person's driver's license and their birthday.
2. Jot down the bond set on each charge. Also ask if any outside agency has a hold.
3. Find out where a cash bond gets paid and what payment types Booking takes right now.
4. Going through a bondsman? Sign with them first. Then carry exact cash or a money order for the state bond fee, which is $15 per surety bond and $30 at most.
5. Have a photo ID with you, and hang on to each receipt.

Releases happen twice daily, at 8:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m., so time your ride. For a face-to-face meeting with Sheriff's staff, appointments run weekdays from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Start with the jail. Once a case reaches a court, that court's clerk can explain whether bond paperwork or money passes through its counter. Both clerks work at the courthouse:

• District Clerk, for felonies: 1 Courthouse Circle Drive, Suite 4-B, Jourdanton, TX 78026, 830-769-3011. Monday through Thursday 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Friday until 4:00 p.m., shut each day from noon to 1:00 p.m.
• County Clerk, for jailable misdemeanors: 1 Courthouse Circle Drive, Suite 102, Jourdanton, TX 78026, 830-767-2511. Weekdays 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Have the case number in front of you. Ask about the amount, the payment rules at that window, and who tells the jail once it's done. Our court page lists the four JP courts that handle Class C tickets.

The Sheriff's website spells out these money rules:

• Each surety bond carries a $15 state fee, payable in exact cash or a money order only.
• The lobby kiosks accept bills or a card, but they load jail accounts and phone time. Bonds are a separate matter.
• Staff won't take cash or money orders handed in for an inmate's account.
• Mailing cash is never allowed.

Call Booking at 830-769-3434 before you drive over, and confirm how the bond itself can be paid. Bondsmen set their own rules on how you pay their fee.

The Census Bureau puts the county at about 53,590 residents (July 1, 2025 estimate). Texas only forces counties of 110,000 or more to run a bail bond board, though smaller ones are free to create one (Occ. Code 1704.002). No board? Then the law allows the sheriff to post the sureties it finds eligible (CCP 17.141). The Sheriff's Office at 830-769-3434 can tell you which bondsmen it takes.

• No state limit exists on a bondsman's fee, so shop around.
• Whatever cash or property you give a bondsman, insist on a receipt; board counties make it a legal duty (Occ. Code 1704.305).
• In a county with a board, Occ. Code 1704.304 says a bondsman can't solicit customers inside a jail.
• When all the cases end, send a written request for your collateral. Where a board exists, thirty days is the limit for returning it (Occ. Code 1704.301).
• Whoever is defense counsel of record may write the bond, too (Occ. Code 1704.163).

A bondsman can return the person to jail. Before doing so, the bondsman notifies the defense lawyer (felony prosecutors get notice as well), then files a sworn form (CCP 17.19). Read your bond contract so you know when this can happen.

It happens. Each bond covers one case only, and a few things can block the door:

• Family violence. If there is reason to think the abuse may go on, the person waits four hours past bond before leaving. A signed order may add up to 48 hours on top (CCP 17.291(b)).
• A parole violation. A parole "blue warrant" leaves the person in jail while the parole board's violation process plays out (Gov't Code 508.254(c)). Bond on the new case won't lift it.
• Another county's warrant. If the warrant came from elsewhere, a magistrate here may take the bail and ship the bond to that county's court (CCP 15.18).
• Probation. A fresh arrest can trigger trouble on probation. The county's adult probation office is at 1405 Campbell Avenue, Suite 102, Jourdanton, TX 78026, 830-769-3724.
• An ICE detainer. See the immigration answer further down.

Before any money changes hands, ring 830-769-3434 and have Booking go through each charge and hold.

Texas starts from a right to bail for the accused. Capital murder, when the proof is evident, has always sat outside that right, per Tex. Const. art. I, sec. 11. Other sections allow denial after a hearing in a few more cases. They reach some repeat felony charges and a fresh felony committed on felony bond. They also reach breaking a safety rule of bond and some protective order violations.

Voters said yes to Proposition 3 in the November 2025 election, and it became sec. 11d. It targets a short list of violent crimes, among them aggravated robbery, murder, trafficking and indecency with a child. On that list, the amendment says bail "shall be denied" if, after a hearing, the state convinces the judge of flight risk or danger. The standard is a preponderance for flight and clear and convincing evidence for danger. Only prosecutors can ask, and a judge granting bail must give written findings.

S.B. 9 in 2025 added two more tools for the state. Prosecutors can now get a district judge to recheck a magistrate's felony bail (CCP 17.029). Under CCP 44.01, the state may also appeal, in listed violent cases, an amount it sees as too small. Appeals judges must rule within 20 days, and meanwhile the defendant stays in the county jail. The prosecutors for this county:

• Felonies: 81st Judicial District Attorney, 1105 A St., Floresville, TX 78114, 830-393-2200.
• County Attorney: 1405 Campbell Avenue, Suite 103, Jourdanton, TX 78026, 830-769-3573.

1. Line up a defense lawyer. That lawyer asks the trial court, in writing, to change the bail.
2. Gather papers that show roots here: recent paychecks, a rent receipt or deed, names of nearby relatives, and what the family can actually afford. Texas law says ability to pay matters (CCP 17.15).
3. Suggest conditions to calm any worries, say reporting to a supervision officer or keeping away from the complaining witness.

Time also matters. Under article 17.151, the state's lack of readiness for trial earns a jailed defendant either signature release or a cut in the amount. The clock runs like this:

• 90 days, for a felony.
• 30 days, misdemeanors punishable by up to one year.
• 15 days, misdemeanors topping out at 180 days.
• 5 days, Class C fine-only cases.

There are exceptions. Also, some magistrates can't reduce a bail a district judge already set (CCP 17.092). For felony case files, call the District Clerk, 830-769-3011.

Ask the magistrate for counsel. Jail staff forward the request to the appointing authority inside 24 hours. In smaller counties such as this one (under 250,000 residents), judges have three working days, counted from when the form lands, to name a lawyer (CCP 15.17, 1.051). Next, the attorney makes a first attempt to contact the client, due one working day later (CCP 26.04).

Public defense here runs through Atascosa Area Advocates, the public defender's office:

• 607 W. Oaklawn, Pleasanton, TX 78064, 830-767-0060. Weekdays 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Every Texas county files a plan for assigning lawyers to people who can't pay. Read it with the Texas Indigent Defense Commission plan search. That commission's office: 209 West 14th Street, Room 202, Austin, TX 78701, 512-936-6994.

Nearly all of them sit in Jourdanton. Only the clerks post office hours.

• 81st and 218th District Courts hear felonies. Files: District Clerk, 1 Courthouse Circle Drive, Suite 4-B, Jourdanton, TX 78026, 830-769-3011.
• County Court at Law hears Class A and Class B cases: 1405 Campbell Avenue, Suite 104, Jourdanton, TX 78026, 830-769-4232. Its files are kept by the County Clerk, 830-767-2511.
• Justice of the Peace, Precinct 1: 2136 2nd St., Pleasanton, TX 78064, 830-569-2801.
• Precinct 2: 1567 FM 3175, Lytle, TX 78052, 830-772-5828.
• Precinct 3: 2240 Hwy 16 N, Jourdanton, TX 78026, 830-769-2074.
• Precinct 4: 744 US 281 S, Pleasanton, TX 78064, 830-569-6614.
• Pleasanton Municipal Court, for city citations: 830-569-5941. Ask staff for the courtroom's street address.
• U.S. District Court, for federal crimes: 262 West Nueva Street, Room 1-400, San Antonio, TX 78207, 210-472-6550.

Keep the receipt safe, since the refund goes to whoever it names once the case wraps up with all bond terms followed (CCP 17.02). A clerk can keep 5% (no more than $50), though only after the judge enters a conviction or deferred adjudication. Deposited cash may also be applied to any fine or cost the court imposes (CCP 17.53). Bring ID to collect.

If the person skips court, forfeiture begins with a judgment nisi (CCP 22.02). The bondsman may escape paying when the person is caught and jailed again within a set time: 180 days for a misdemeanor case, 270 days for a felony case (CCP 22.13). Failure to appear can also bring its own bail jumping charge (Penal Code 38.10), which adds to the trouble.

Refunds are handled by the clerk of whichever court has the case: District Clerk 830-769-3011 on felony cases, County Clerk 830-767-2511 on misdemeanors.

Releases are at 8:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m., so plan ahead. Call 830-769-3434, ask for Booking, and find out how any leftover balance is paid back and when the person's things can be picked up.

Bring ID with your photo. Collecting for the person? Ask Booking whether they must sign a release. For deposits and refunds of balances, read our jail money page before you go.

A federal case from Pleasanton, Poteet or anywhere else in the county goes to San Antonio, in the Western District of Texas. Clerk: 262 West Nueva Street, Room 1-400, San Antonio, TX 78207, 210-472-6550.

• A federal magistrate judge decides whether release is safe, at a detention hearing that usually comes at the first appearance (18 U.S.C. 3142). Federal court uses no bondsmen at all.
• The U.S. Marshals Service keeps watch over federal prisoners awaiting trial: 262 West Nueva Street, Room 2-300, San Antonio, TX 78207, 210-332-6800. Ask that office where your person is being held.
• Federal Public Defender: 300 Convent Street, Room 2300, San Antonio, TX 78205, 210-472-6700.
• For anyone already sentenced to federal prison, use the Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate locator.

A bond on the local charge leaves the detainer in place. How it plays out:

1. ICE starts the process by sending the jail its Form I-247A.
2. On the strength of that request, Booking can keep the person up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released (8 CFR 287.7(d)).
3. By Texas statute, the jail must comply and must notify the detained person. Showing citizenship or lawful immigration status ends the duty; a Texas driver's license can serve as that proof (CCP 2A.060). The duty dates to the 2017 law called S.B. 4.
4. S.B. 8, a 2025 statute, says every Texas sheriff in charge of a jail needs to request and work out a 287(g) arrangement with ICE. Their cutoff date is December 1, 2026. Phone 830-769-3434 to ask where the Sheriff's Office stands.
5. Next, ICE agents collect the person from the jail. Its San Antonio Field Office covers south central Texas: 3523 Crosspoint Drive, San Antonio, TX 78217, 210-564-3300. People it detains may be taken to places like the Dilley Immigration Processing Center, 300 El Rancho Way, Dilley, TX 78017, 830-378-6500, or the Karnes County Immigration Processing Center, 409 FM 1144, Karnes City, TX 78118, 830-254-2000.
6. Search by name and birth country in the ICE Online Detainee Locator.

People sentenced on a state jail felony serve that time in a state jail. Bigger felonies go to state prison, and the prisons are run by TDCJ. Sections 12.31 through 12.35 of the Penal Code give each range. New arrivals are classified at intake, then sent on to a unit that suits them.

Search the TDCJ inmate search for people in state prisons today. It lags behind: TDCJ updates it on working days, and each entry is at least 24 hours old. There is more on our Texas state prisons page for families with someone headed to TDCJ.

Texas juvenile courts take cases for children ages 10 through 16. Once a person turns 17, adult court handles new charges (see Family Code 51.02). Officers have a duty under Family Code 52.02 to contact a parent without delay.

Held youths are entitled to a detention hearing before the second working day ends. Weekend timing matters: when a youth is detained on a Friday or Saturday, it happens sooner. Family Code 54.01 has the court appoint the youth an attorney ahead of time. The juvenile judge, not a bondsman, decides on release.

The county's own youth detention site is the Atascosa County Juvenile Justice Center, 1511 Zanderson Ave., Jourdanton, TX 78026, 830-769-3900. It is staffed 24 hours, and its lobby opens weekdays 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.