Crane County Jail Inmate Bail & Bonds

A magistrate makes the call. Texas gives the arresting side 48 hours at most, and says the person must be brought over with no needless delay (CCP 14.06, 15.17). The magistrate may meet the person in a room or over a video link. The jail at 432-558-3571 can say when the hearing is planned.

That hearing is brief. In it, the magistrate:

• tells the person the charge, and explains silence and legal help as rights
• asks whether the person needs a free lawyer, then helps fill out the request
• sets bail, picking terms no tighter than needed to protect others and get the person back for court (CCP 17.028)

Many officials can serve as magistrates under state law, including judges of every level and justices of the peace (CCP 2A.151). Before setting bail on a felony, or on a misdemeanor that can mean jail, a magistrate needs bail training (CCP 17.023). Jailable charges call for a public safety report first. It gives the magistrate a summary of past records. It holds no risk score, and it never names a dollar amount (CCP 17.021, 17.022).

A deadline protects people picked up with no warrant, and state law spells it out. When probable cause is still undecided, the jail must free a misdemeanor arrestee within 24 hours, on bail of $5,000 or less. A felony arrestee gets 48 hours and a $10,000 limit. Prosecutors may request a delay of up to 72 hours (CCP 17.033).

There are two legal kinds of release: bail bonds and personal bonds (CCP 17.01, 17.02, 17.03). In practice a family picks from three:

• Cash. You hand over the whole bail in money. Keep every court date and the cash is paid back when the case closes.
• Surety. A licensed bondsman, or some other qualified backer, guarantees the full amount to the court. Whatever the outcome, the fee stays with the bondsman.
• Personal bond. No bail money at all. The person signs a written pledge to show up.

Some charges block a personal bond. Examples are crimes on the state's violent list and a felon found with a gun. So are terroristic threats at Class A level or above, and some protective order breaks. It is also barred when a person already under supervision for violence picks up a new charge. With burglary, organized criminal activity or some drug felonies, the judge who will try the case is the one who may allow it (CCP 17.03).

The magistrate may attach conditions to any bond. One is set by law: when a child under 15 was in the car, or on any repeat DWI, the person may drive only a vehicle with an ignition interlock device (CCP 17.441). Our statewide bail page covers each bond in more depth.

No price list for bail exists at the state level in Texas. The magistrate weighs each person on their own, which is why one DWI can cost far more than another. Any county bail schedule still has to yield to those state factors (CCP 17.028, 17.15).

Here is the checklist the law hands the magistrate (CCP 17.15):

1. Does this figure make a return to court likely?
2. Is it so steep that it only punishes?
3. What happened, and how serious is the charge?
4. How much money can this person truly raise?
5. Is anyone at risk, such as the victim, officers or neighbors?
6. What do past arrests, the safety report and citizenship status show?

Felony bonds in this county also follow a district court order. The clerk shares it as the Standing Order on Felony Bond Conditions. To hear the real figure for one person, phone 432-558-3571 with their full name and birth date in hand.

Bonds for people in custody are handled at the Law Enforcement Center, 464 NW Truck Route, Crane, TX 79731. A jailer or the sheriff may accept bail after a magistrate sets it. Before doing so, they run a criminal history check, and in a violent case the amount must come from a magistrate (CCP 17.20, 17.22). Here is the order to follow:

1. Call the Sheriff's Office at 432-558-3571 and ask to reach the jail.
2. Share the date of birth and the legal name, spelled out.
3. Get the bail figure for every charge. Check that the magistrate hearing is done.
4. Find out where to pay right now, which money the jail will take, and who should be the payee on a money order.
5. Find out about how long the jail needs to process the release after payment.
6. Ask whether another case or a hold is waiting.
7. Carry a photo ID and exact payment. File the receipt where it won't get lost.

Family violence charges add a pause. When there is probable cause the violence may continue, the person stays put for four hours after the bond is posted. With a written order, a magistrate can stretch that wait by two more days at most (CCP 17.291).

Some bonds can be paid there. One clerk's office keeps the files for felony and misdemeanor courts alike. Find it in Room 110 of the Crane County Courthouse, 201 W. 6th Street, Crane, TX 79731, 432-558-3581. It opens 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Friday. Money is taken only until 4:30 p.m. on Monday through Thursday, and until 3:30 p.m. on Friday.

Class C cases carry only a fine. For those, the small courts below usually release people on a personal bond (CCP 45A.107):

• Justice of the Peace, Crane County Courthouse, 201 W 6th St, Crane, TX 79731, 432-558-1108. Starting September 1, 2026, its doors close to the public each Tuesday while staff scan old files.
• Municipal Court for city police tickets, 115 W. 6th Street, Crane, TX 79731, 432-558-7747, weekdays 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Phone the right office before you go. Confirm it can accept the bond, what money it accepts, and how the jail learns the bond is paid.

Rules on payment change over time. Call the jail at 432-558-3571 first and run through the list: cash, cashier's check, money order or card. Ask exactly whose name belongs on a money order. Paying at the clerk's window? Plan around its afternoon money cutoff.

The Justice of the Peace links an online payment page for its own citations and fines. That page serves tickets from the justice court. To bond someone out of jail, get payment steps from the jail or the clerk.

Mailing cash is never safe. Hold on to a printed receipt, because a cash bond refund goes to the name written on that slip.

Only in a county of 110,000 or more people must a bail bond board license bondsmen, though smaller ones may create one. The Census Bureau put this county near 4,554 people for July 1, 2025. Where no board exists, the sheriff may post the sureties who qualify (CCP 17.141). The Sheriff's Office at 432-558-3571 can say who writes bonds here.

Texas sets some ground rules for bondsmen in Occupations Code chapter 1704:

• State law puts no ceiling on a bondsman's fee. Call more than one, and get each quote on paper.
• Board counties entitle you to a receipt. Here, ask the bondsman for a written one anyway.
• In board counties, a bondsman may not drum up clients inside a jail.
• Did you put up collateral? When the case wraps up, send the bondsman a written demand for it. The bondsman then has 30 days, if the county has a board.
• The person's own lawyer of record can also post bond.

Bondsmen can't just quit a bond. A warning must go to the defense lawyer, and in felony cases to the prosecutor. Then the bondsman signs an affidavit and turns it in to the judge (CCP 17.19).

One bond answers for one case. Other things can still keep the person behind the jail doors:

• ICE detainer. Texas jails must hold the person for ICE, unless they prove U.S. citizenship or legal status (CCP 2A.060).
• Parole "blue warrant." State parolees accused of a violation can be held until their parole hearing (GC 508.254).
• Another county's warrant. The local magistrate can fix bail and route the bond to the county behind the warrant (CCP 15.18).
• Probation. Adult probation works out of Room 200 at the courthouse, 201 W 6th St, Crane, TX 79731, 432-558-1107.
• More than one case. A city ticket needs its own bond, apart from a county charge.
• Family violence pause of four hours or longer, if the abuse may go on.

Ask the jail at 432-558-3571 to name each hold, and do it before paying.

Bail is a right for nearly all people charged in Texas. The long-standing exception covers capital cases when the proof is evident (Texas Constitution, Article I, Section 11). After a hearing, bail can also be refused for certain repeat felonies or new felonies on bail, broken safety conditions, and protective order violations (Sections 11a, 11b and 11c).

Section 11d joined that article in November 2025, when voters passed Proposition 3. It applies to murder and capital murder. Trafficking makes the list. Indecency with a child does too. So do three aggravated crimes: robbery, kidnapping and sexual assault. Assault is covered when it is aggravated by serious injury or by use of a gun, knife, club or explosive. Only the prosecutor may ask. Bail then "shall be denied" once the prosecutor shows at a hearing that flight is more likely than not. Danger takes a higher bar: clear and convincing evidence. When a judge grants bail anyway, the judge must explain it in written findings.

Prosecutors gained another option in 2025. For violent charges on a set list, a bail they think is too low can be appealed. A ruling must come within 20 days, and the person stays locked up until then (CCP 44.01). Prosecutors here:

• District Attorney's office, Crane County Courthouse, 201 W 6th St, Crane, TX 79731, 432-558-1134
• County Attorney's office, 520 South Gaston, Suite B, Crane, TX 79731, 432-272-8954

A written motion from the defense lawyer starts the process. The judge will want proof, so collect:

• pay stubs, bills and bank papers showing what you can truly raise
• a lease or a landlord's letter tying the person to a home nearby
• a boss's letter, school papers or proof they care for kids or parents
• terms that ease the judge's worries, like a curfew

There is also a speed rule aimed at prosecutors. When the state can't show it is ready for trial by the deadline, the person has a right to a personal bond or a smaller bail. Felonies allow the state 90 days. Misdemeanors with a possible jail term above 180 days allow 30. Smaller jailable misdemeanors allow 15, and fine-only charges allow 5. A few people don't qualify (CCP 17.151).

Prosecutors may also push from their side. For a felony, they may request a fresh review of the bail by a district judge (CCP 17.029). Filing questions go to the clerk at 432-558-3581.

No public defender office works in this county. Instead, the county's plan for free lawyers, posted by the Texas Indigent Defense Commission, takes turns among private lawyers on a list. Capital murder goes to a separate regional office that defends only capital cases.

1. Speak up at the magistrate hearing. Request forms also come from the commission's site or the Sheriff's Office.
2. Within 24 hours, the form reaches the District Judge on a felony, or the County Judge on a misdemeanor.
3. Three working days is the deadline here for naming a lawyer, counted from when the form comes in (CCP 1.051).
4. Expect the appointed lawyer to reach out within about one working day.

The plan presumes a person can't afford a lawyer if the household has food stamps, SSI, Medicaid, public housing or TANF. Household net income at 125% of federal poverty guidelines or lower also qualifies, and so does having under $500 a month after needed bills. Whether they could post bail, and what relatives earn, are left out of the math.

Reach the commission at 209 West 14th Street, Room 202, Austin, TX 78701, 512-936-6994.

Most of these courts share the Crane County Courthouse, 201 W 6th St, Crane, TX 79731, 432-558-1101.

• 109th District Court, felony cases. Its judge rides a circuit through Andrews, Crane and Winkler counties, with an office at 201 N Main, Room 201, Andrews, TX 79714, 432-524-1419. Felony files sit with the clerk in Room 110, 432-558-3581.
• County Court, the County Judge's bench, for misdemeanors of Class A and Class B. Its files are with that same clerk.
• Justice of the Peace, the countywide court for Class C, 432-558-1108. No public hours on Tuesdays.
• Municipal Court, Class C cases from city officers, 115 W. 6th Street, Crane, TX 79731, 432-558-7747.
• U.S. District Court, federal cases, 200 East Wall, Room 222, Midland, TX 79701, 432-686-4001.

Keep every bond term, and the money returns to the name printed on the receipt (CCP 17.02). After a conviction, or after deferred adjudication, a 5% fee may come out, with a $50 cap. A judge can also put the money toward that defendant's fines and court costs (CCP 17.53). The state courts sum this up in a money bond fact sheet.

A missed court date costs a lot. Next comes a judgment nisi, a court order that begins the forfeit (CCP 22.01, 22.02). Bondsmen catch a break if the person is locked up again quickly. On a misdemeanor the cutoff is 180 days. Felonies get 270 (CCP 22.13). Skipping court can also become its own new charge. A fine-only first case makes it Class C. When the first case could mean jail, it is Class A, and after a felony it becomes third degree (PC 38.10).

For refund questions, call the clerk at 432-558-3581. Bring the receipt and an ID.

The jail locks up wallets, phones and clothes at booking and holds them until the day of release. Raise the subject before release day. Phone 432-558-3571 to find out when items can be collected, and how leftover money on the person's account gets paid out.

Have your photo ID with you. When the property belongs to a friend or relative, ask if they must sign a release. For jail account basics, read our inmate money page.

Federal court for this county meets in Midland. The Western District of Texas runs it as the Midland-Odessa Division, with its clerk at 200 East Wall, Room 222, Midland, TX 79701, 432-686-4001.

• A federal magistrate judge rules on release. The Bail Reform Act sets the rules, and a detention hearing is often held (18 U.S.C. 3142).
• Until the federal case ends, deputy U.S. Marshals hold the person, and may book people into any county jail that holds federal inmates. The Marshals' Midland office is at 200 East Wall Street, Suite 213, Midland, TX 79701, 432-686-4100.
• Federal prison sentences show on the BOP inmate locator. Search a name or a register number.

Paying the state bond leaves an ICE detainer standing. The two are different holds. The usual order is:

1. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) wants the person held. It tells the county jail so on a detainer called Form I-247A.
2. The Crane jail can then hold the person for up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released, so ICE has time to collect them (8 CFR 287.7(d)).
3. Jails in Texas must follow detainers and explain to the person why they are held. Showing lawful status or U.S. citizenship ends the hold (CCP 2A.060). Since 2017, Texas has also barred any county rule that curbs immigration enforcement (GC 752.053).
4. Looking ahead to December 1, 2026, a 2025 state law has each jail-running county seeking a 287(g) agreement with ICE. For Crane's own status, phone the Sheriff's Office at 432-558-3571.
5. Once ICE has custody, try the ICE Online Detainee Locator. Type in the A-number. Or use the full name, with the person's country of birth.

State jail felonies carry time in one of the state jails. Any felony graded third degree or above means a term with the state prison system, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ). Usually people wait at the county jail after sentencing until TDCJ calls them to intake. Staff there sort them, then move them to a unit that suits them best.

• On the TDCJ inmate search, start with a last name. You can also enter a TDCJ or SID number. The data is refreshed on business days.
• For each unit's rules on visits and letters, use our Texas state prisons listing.

In Texas, a child means ages 10 to 16, and 17-year-olds are tried as adults (FC 51.02). The local juvenile board's plan sends a child in custody to a juvenile processing office. As a rule, the child can't stay there past six hours.

When intake doesn't release the child to family, a detention hearing must take place within two working days. When the pickup lands on Friday or on Saturday, the limit is one working day (FC 54.01). Before it starts, the child is given a lawyer. Parents can call the Sheriff's Office at 432-558-3571 to ask where the child was taken and when court is set.