Terry County Jail Inmate Bail & Bonds

A magistrate, usually within hours. Texas gives officials a firm limit: once arrested, the person sees a magistrate inside 48 hours, either face to face or on camera, as CCP art. 15.17 allows. Bail has to be settled inside that window too, judged for that one person alone (CCP art. 17.028). CCP means the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure.

Here, the Justice of the Peace is among the officials who hold this hearing. The office is at 507B West Main Street, Brownfield, TX 79316, 806-637-4757. At that hearing, count on the magistrate to:

• state the charge and warn that anything said may come up in court;
• go over the right to keep quiet, to hire counsel, to halt questioning and to an examining trial;
• offer a court-paid lawyer and walk through the paperwork for one;
• fix the dollar amount and any release rules.

For anything at Class B level or above, a brief public safety report comes first. It lists past cases and warrants, with no score and no dollar suggestion (CCP art. 17.022). Jail staff at 806-637-2212 know when the next session is scheduled.

Texas sorts bail into bail bonds, which rest on cash or on sureties, and personal bonds, which rest on neither (CCP art. 17.01). Plainly put:

• Cash. You hand over every dollar, which stays on deposit with the court until a final ruling. Kept every rule? It comes back.
• Surety. A bondsman, or another approved backer, guarantees the whole amount. The family pays that backer a fee.
• Personal. The accused signs a pledge to return. Nobody co-signs, and the family pays nothing at the start.

The personal option is off the table in some cases. Examples are violent crimes on the state's list and Class A terroristic threats. So are some protective order breaks and a felon with a firearm. A person already supervised for violence who gets a new case is out too. Burglary, organized crime and some drug felony charges need the trial judge's okay (CCP art. 17.03).

Any type of bond can carry rules. The magistrate must keep them as light as safety allows. Certain alcohol cases force the person to install a blow-to-start device. Among them: a second or later DWI, driving drunk with a minor aboard, intoxication assault and intoxication manslaughter, as CCP art. 17.441 directs.

Texas uses no single price chart. Magistrates choose a figure person by person, and bail may never be set just to crush someone (CCP art. 17.15). Their checklist:

• the offense itself and whether violence was involved;
• what the accused can realistically come up with;
• whether the alleged victim, police or the public would be at risk;
• criminal record and any history of skipping court;
• citizenship.

Caps kick in for one situation. After a warrantless arrest with no ruling yet on probable cause, a misdemeanor suspect walks out by hour 24 on a bond capped at $5,000. A felony suspect must be let go by the 48th hour on $10,000 or less. Can't afford it? A personal bond replaces it. Prosecutors may ask a court to push that out to 72 hours (CCP art. 17.033). Locally, the lawyer plan for Terry and Yoakum spells out the same deadlines.

For the actual number, open the Sheriff's jail list. Next to each charge sits a dollar figure or "No Bond." Staff at 806-637-2212 can also tell you.

Bond money is commonly brought to the jail, 1311 Tahoka Road, Brownfield, TX 79316. Someone answers the phone around the clock, while the office itself works 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. Texas lets a sheriff or jailer accept bail once it has been set, but never lets them pick the amount on a violent charge (CCP art. 17.22).

1. Dial 806-637-2212. Read the jailer the legal name and birth date.
2. Jot down each count's bond, and check that a magistrate has signed off.
3. Ask which payment the window will take today. For a money order, find out the exact payee.
4. Before paying, ask about parole, ICE or out-of-county holds.
5. Bring a photo ID and exact money. Keep your receipt safe, since a cash refund is issued to that name.

Short on money? A licensed bondsman can sign for the full amount, and you pay that bondsman a fee.

Once filed, bond papers go to a clerk. The District Clerk keeps felony ones, and the County Clerk keeps those on jailable misdemeanors. Before heading downtown, ask the jail where money for this particular case belongs, then ring that office about accepted payment.

• District Clerk, felony files, 500 West Main Street, Room 209E, Brownfield, TX 79316, 806-637-4202. Open weekdays 8:30 a.m. to noon, then 1:00 to 5:00 p.m.
• County Clerk, misdemeanor files, 500 West Main Street, Room 105, Brownfield, TX 79316, 806-637-8551.
• Justice of the Peace, tickets that carry only a fine, 507B West Main Street, Brownfield, TX 79316, 806-637-4757. On fine-only cases, release on a personal bond is standard (CCP art. 45A.107).
• Brownfield Municipal Court, tickets written inside the city, 218 West Main Street, Brownfield, TX 79316, 806-637-7776.

Plan on cash or a money order unless jail staff approve something else. A quick call to 806-637-2212 saves a wasted drive, and cash should never go through the mail.

Card payments exist here, yet they cover fines and court costs, not bail:

• The District Clerk points felony fine and fee payers to a card website, with phone payments at 866-539-2020. Keep the case number handy.
• The County Clerk sends misdemeanor court costs through that same service.
• The justice court links a ticket payment site. Over its counter it accepts cash, money orders and cashier's checks; personal and business checks get refused.

Counties of 110,000 people or more must set up a bail bond board to approve bondsmen and post their names (Occupations Code § 1704.002). This county has roughly 11,720 residents. Without a board, a sheriff may post its own roster of eligible sureties (CCP art. 17.141). Call the Sheriff's Office at 806-637-2212 to learn which bondsmen it takes.

What Texas law gives you when dealing with one:

• No state limit on the fee exists, so nail down the price on paper first.
• You get a receipt for each payment, and bondsmen can't hunt for clients inside a jail.
• Got collateral tied up, like a pickup's title? After the final ruling, ask for it in a letter. Thirty days after that letter, the item should be back in your hands.
• An attorney already representing the person can serve as the surety.
• Before giving up a client, the bondsman must tell the client's lawyer. On a felony the prosecutor hears too, and the bondsman files a sworn form under CCP art. 17.19 before the surrender.

Every bond is tied to one charge, so other matters can keep the door shut. Have staff at 806-637-2212 list all holds before you spend a dollar. Watch for:

• Family violence. When further violence seems likely, the person sits four more hours after posting. By written order, a magistrate can tack on as many as two more days, as CCP art. 17.291 allows.
• Out-of-county warrants. When a different county issued the warrant, a local magistrate can still take bail on it; CCP art. 15.18 then has the bond forwarded there.
• Parole. Parole officials can issue what people call a blue warrant. It holds the person here until a hearing on the alleged violation, under Gov't Code § 508.254, regardless of bond.
• Adult probation. A fresh arrest can stir up an existing probation case. The local office is Room 5B, 500 West Main Street, Brownfield, TX 79316, 806-637-6146.
• ICE. An immigration detainer must be followed by the jail unless lawful status is proven, per CCP art. 2A.060.
• Federal or contract holds. This jail boards people for other agencies, and a county bond won't release them.

Possible mental illness adds one more step: the jail has 12 hours to report it to a magistrate (CCP art. 16.22).

Almost every Texas defendant is entitled to bail. The exceptions appear in the state constitution:

• Capital murder and other capital cases, when proof is evident, a rule found in Tex. Const. art. I, § 11.
• Narrow cases tied to repeat felonies, felonies charged while out on bail, broken safety conditions and certain protective orders (sections 11a through 11c).
• Proposition 3, approved by Texas voters on November 4, 2025. Murder and capital murder fall under it. Aggravated kidnapping is on it, with aggravated robbery and aggravated sexual assault beside it. The rest: some aggravated assaults, trafficking of persons, and indecency involving a child. At a hearing, if the state shows a strong chance of flight (by a preponderance) or a danger (clear and convincing evidence), the judge must refuse bail. The request can come only from the prosecution (Tex. Const. art. I, § 11d).

Two 2025 changes add more review. At the prosecutor's request, a district judge can now take a fresh look at any felony bail, under CCP art. 17.029. In the listed violent cases, prosecutors may also appeal when they think bail was set too low. A ruling comes within 20 days, and the person stays in custody until then (CCP art. 44.01). Violating bond conditions in family violence or child sex abuse cases can also lead to bail being denied (CCP art. 17.152).

These requests come from the County and District Attorney, 500 West Main Street, Room 208E, Brownfield, TX 79316, 806-637-4984. That single office prosecutes cases at every level.

The usual tool is a written motion from the defense attorney asking the judge to trim the amount or loosen the rules. Ability to pay is on the judge's required list. You can support that motion with:

1. pay stubs, bills and an honest total of what relatives can pool;
2. proof of local roots, like a job, a rental agreement or kids enrolled nearby;
3. a plan that answers safety concerns, maybe a curfew or a no-contact promise.

Delay by the state can help too. If prosecutors are still not ready after a set time, the person wins either a personal bond or a smaller bail figure. Here are the limits under CCP art. 17.151, which has some exceptions:

• felony charge: 90 days
• misdemeanor carrying a possible jail term above 180 days: 30 days
• any other jailable misdemeanor: 15 days
• Class C, fine only: 5 days

File felony motions through the District Clerk, 500 West Main Street, Room 209E, Brownfield, TX 79316, 806-637-4202, and misdemeanor motions through the County Clerk, 500 West Main Street, Room 105, Brownfield, TX 79316, 806-637-8551.

Speak up at the magistrate hearing, or ask any time later. Forms sit at the jail and with each judge's court coordinator, and the state commission posts them online. Return the finished form to a jailer or coordinator. Small counties like this one must name counsel within three working days (CCP art. 1.051), counted from when the form arrives.

• Misdemeanor appointments come from the County Judge, Room 102, 500 West Main Street, Brownfield, TX 79316, 806-637-6421.
• Felony appointments come from the judge of the 121st District Court, Room 302W, 500 West Main Street, Brownfield, TX 79316, 806-637-7742.
• A regional office in Plainview, the High Plains Regional Public Defender, has first claim on most felony cases. It may take up to 85 percent of them, besides some misdemeanors and appeals. Phone 806-598-6886.

See the complete Terry and Yoakum appointment plan. The Texas Indigent Defense Commission sits at 209 West 14th Street, Room 202, Austin, TX 78701, 512-936-6994.

All local criminal courts are in Brownfield, and most fill the courthouse at 500 West Main Street, Brownfield, TX 79316, main switchboard 806-637-7230.

• 121st District Court, felonies, shared with Yoakum County. District Clerk: 500 West Main Street, Room 209E, Brownfield, TX 79316, 806-637-4202.
• County Court, the County Judge's court, for jailable misdemeanors. County Clerk: 500 West Main Street, Room 105, Brownfield, TX 79316, 806-637-8551.
• Justice of the Peace, Class C cases, housed in courthouse Annex B with mail and payments at 507B West Main Street, Brownfield, TX 79316, 806-637-4757.
• Municipal court, for tickets inside city limits, 218 West Main Street, Brownfield, TX 79316, 806-637-7776.
• Federal court, up the road in Lubbock, 1205 Texas Avenue, Room 209, Lubbock, TX 79401, 806-472-1900.

Once the case closes, and if every bond rule was followed, a cash deposit is refunded to the person listed on the receipt, says CCP art. 17.02. A clerk is allowed to withhold 5 percent as a fee, with $50 as the ceiling, but that fee depends on a conviction or deferred adjudication (Local Gov't Code § 117.055). Whatever the defendant still owes the court in fines or costs may come out of it too. The state court agency's money bond fact sheet has details.

A missed hearing changes everything:

• The judge signs a judgment nisi, a temporary order that starts the forfeiture (CCP art. 22.02).
• A surety may avoid paying if the person is back in jail soon. On a misdemeanor that means 180 days. On a felony it means 270 (CCP art. 22.13), which is why bondsmen hunt for clients who skip.
• Bail jumping is a new charge of its own. Its grade follows the first case, so a fine-only ticket brings a Class C, while a felony brings a third-degree felony. That new count adds to the original case, under Penal Code § 38.10.

Ask for a refund from the clerk holding the deposit. The District Clerk takes felony ones at 806-637-4202, and the County Clerk misdemeanor ones at 806-637-8551. Both offices are inside 500 West Main Street, Brownfield, TX 79316.

On release day, ask about two things: money still in the inmate account and the clothes and items stored at booking. Phone 806-637-2212 and find out how the person gets their leftover account money and when stored property can be picked up at 1311 Tahoka Road, Brownfield, TX 79316. Weekday office hours run 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Carry a photo ID. Collecting a relative's things? Staff may want that person's signed okay first, so ask. Our inmate account page has general tips on deposits and refunds.

Federal charges filed against someone arrested here are handled by the Lubbock division, whose U.S. District Clerk sits at 1205 Texas Avenue, Room 209, Lubbock, TX 79401, 806-472-1900.

• The first appearance is before a U.S. magistrate judge. Release terms are set there, unless the government seeks a detention hearing. That hearing may be delayed briefly at either side's request (18 U.S.C. 3142).
• The U.S. Marshals Service holds people who are waiting for a federal trial. Its Lubbock office: 1205 Texas Avenue, Room C-126, Lubbock, TX 79401, 806-472-7655. Area county jails, including this one, have boarded federal prisoners, so ask the Marshals where the person sleeps tonight.
• For people who qualify, the Federal Public Defender works from 1205 Texas Avenue, Room 507, Lubbock, TX 79401, 806-472-7236.
• Once sentenced to prison, the person appears on the Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate locator.

Posting bond leaves an immigration hold in force. What normally follows:

1. The federal immigration agency, ICE, files a detainer with the Brownfield jail using Form I-247A.
2. With it on file, Tahoka Road jailers may keep them up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released (8 CFR 287.7(d)).
3. Texas makes its jails honor these requests. The person goes free only by proving lawful status, as set out in CCP art. 2A.060. Since 2017, cities, counties and sheriffs in Texas have been barred from policies that curb immigration enforcement, per Gov't Code § 752.053.
4. Texas passed another law in 2025 (Gov't Code ch. 753). Sheriffs who operate jails must seek a 287(g) pact from ICE. Their window closes December 1, 2026. Ask the Sheriff's Office, 806-637-2212, whether the county has signed.
5. After pickup, find the person on the ICE Online Detainee Locator, by name and country of birth, adding the A-number or birth date if you have it.

Prisons and state jails in Texas share one operator, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ). The lowest felony level is served in a state jail, while second- and third-degree terms and above mean prison, per Penal Code § 12.35. Everyone begins at an intake center, where staff check and classify them. After that, TDCJ ships them to whichever unit suits their security level.

• The TDCJ inmate search wants the surname spelled exactly as the state has it, plus a first initial. You may search by TDCJ or SID number instead. Only people inside TDCJ right now appear. Data refreshes on business days and trails real life by about a day.
• Our Texas state prisons page explains the system as a whole.

A child aged 10, 16 or anywhere between on the offense date goes to juvenile court. Texas handles a 17-year-old in adult court (Fam. Code § 51.02). Whoever detains a child must quickly tell a parent or guardian and give the reason.

Detention gets a judge's review by the second working day. For a child held on a Friday or Saturday, the review happens by the next working day. A lawyer gets assigned beforehand (Fam. Code § 54.01). At that hearing, the judge rules on whether the child goes home.

• Terry Juvenile Probation, Room 301E, 500 West Main Street, Brownfield, TX 79316, 806-637-6941.
• A child the court keeps in custody goes to a detention center outside the county. The closest state-registered centers are the Lubbock County Juvenile Justice Center, 2025 N. Akron Ave, Lubbock, TX 79415, 806-775-1800, and the Garza County Regional Juvenile Center in Post, 806-495-0266. Juvenile probation can tell you which one has the child.