Texas Attorney General Opinion: JC-195 Page: 1 of 13
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OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL STATE OF TEXAS
JOHN CORNYN
March 17, 2000
The Honorable Tim Curry Opinion No. JC-0195
Tarrant County Criminal District Attorney
401 West Belknap Re: Whether a county sheriff is authorized to
Fort Worth, Texas 76196-0201 manage and dispose of cash bail bond money for
unfiled criminal cases, and related questions
(RQ-01 17-JC)
Dear Mr. Curry:
You ask about the maintenance and disposition of cash bail bonds for criminal "no-filed"
cases, and the disposition of unclaimed liquidated certificates of deposit held as security for the
execution ofbail bonds. Specifically, you first ask whether the Tarrant County Sheriff(the "sheriff')
is required to forward cash bail bonds for unfiled cases to the district or county clerk for deposit in
the county trust depository. Second, if the sheriff is not required to do so, you ask whether the
sheriff is authorized to maintain the funds in a separate interest bearing account at the county
depository. Third, you ask whether the county auditor must be a signatory on that account. Fourth,
you ask whether the sheriff may disburse these funds to known defendants against whom no case
is filed. Fifth, you ask whether no-filed case cash bail bonds become abandoned property subject
to chapter 74 of the Property Code when the defendant cannot be found; and, if so, you also ask
about the application of certain provisions of the Property Code dealing with abandoned property.
Sixth, you ask whether liquidated certificates of deposit given as security for the execution of bail
bonds become abandoned property subject to chapter 74 when the bondsmen or attorneys who
deposited them cannot be found; and, if so, you also ask about the application of certain provisions
of the Property Code. Finally, you ask whether all interest earnings on the no-filed case cash bail
bonds and the liquidated certificates of deposit must be returned to the depositors. See Letter from
Honorable Tim Curry, Tarrant County Criminal District Attorney, to Honorable John Comyn, Texas
Attorney General (Sept. 27, 1999) (on file with Opinion Committee) [hereinafter "Request Letter"].
To provide a context for your questions regarding no-filed case cash bail bonds, we briefly
review the statutory scheme governing the taking of bail bonds. A bail bond is a written undertaking
binding a defendant in custody to appear before a court or a magistrate to answer a criminal
accusation. See TEX. CODE CRIM. PROC. ANN. art. 17.02 (Vemrnon 1977). The bond is in a specific
amount and must be executed by the defendant and his or her surety. See id. The surety is often,
but not always, a professional bondsman. See Tex. Att'y Gen. Op. No. JC-0024 (1999) at 1. In lieu
of having a surety, a defendant may deposit cash with the custodian of the court in which thedefendant's case is pending. See TEX. CODE CRIM. PROC. ANN. art 17.02 (Vernon 1977). Such cash
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Texas. Attorney-General's Office. Texas Attorney General Opinion: JC-195, text, March 17, 2000; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth274504/m1/1/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.