The Bail Post

In the last few months Representative Ann Johnson publicly called for Texas to get rid of bondsmen and replace the current system of release in Texas with the system referred to as "The New Jersey Plan."   On this episode learn what the New Jersey Plan is and how pretrial release is handled under this release system. 

Our guest is Michelle Esquenazi who is a bondsman from New York.  Join us as we learn about a release/detain system that relies on an algorithm called a  risk assessment tool to make determinations about release. 

To learn more about risk assessments visit the PBT website or go directly to one of the organizations pamphlets on the issue by CLICKING HERE.

This is a great place to educate yourself about all things criminal justice reform/bail reform.  Educate yourself and join the debate.

The next Guest on "The Bail Post" is James Lindblad.  He has been a bondsman in Hawaii for over 35 years.  He has witnessed many changes to the criminal justice system over the years.  Join us as we discuss HB 1567, its passage and the publics' response which caused the Governor of Hawaii to veto the bill.

Mr. Lindblad suggests that the real fight was over the need for a new jail.  HB 1567 was the response of progressives so that a new jail would not be needed.  But law enforcement, business owners and the mayors of the four major islands banded together with social media to spread the message that releasing everyone was not working and that a change was needed.  The public responded.  

Is the "woke" luau over in Hawaii?   James Lindblad is hopeful that more positive change is coming.

Several months ago, the Harris County Bail Bond Board adopted a new local rule that requires bondsmen to collect 10% of the face amount of certain bonds before the bond is posted.  In the short span of several months there have been some significant and quick ramifications as a result of the board's actions.

On this episode join the discussion with our Guest Representative Gene Newman.   Gene is the District 61 elected representative for the Mississippi House of Representatives.  Gene also is a second generation bondsman with over 40 years experience.  In addition, he has degrees in economics and criminal justice.  Representative Newman also has an indepth knowledge of how bail works in Texas and has visited many bail bond board meetings over the years.

Find out why the Harris County sheriff recently asked for an additional $25 million from the commissioners to address what he called unsustainable jail overcrowding.  Lina Hidalgo, who is the Harris County Judge, asked what was causing the "bottle neck."  Listen to our podcast to find the answer. 

J.R. Woolley is the Justice of the Peace of Precinct 2 for Waller County, Texas.  Judge Wooley is also the Legislative Committee Chair for the Justices of the Peace Association and he testifies before the legislature about bills that may impact the association.

On this episode of the Bail Post, Judge Woolley talks about the implementation of SB6 which is the major Criminal Justice Reform/Bail Reform Bill passed by the Texas Legislature in the most recent session and special sessions.

Our guest on this episode is Tarrant County Sheriff Bill E. Waybourn.  Bill began his career in service when he joined the U.S. Air Force in 1978, serving in both the active duty and reserves. On April 30, 1981, after serving active duty, Bill began working for Dalworthington Gardens Police Department. Bill was promoted to Chief of Police on June 1, 1984; making him the youngest police chief in the state of Texas. Later, he united the city through combining the police and fire services making him the Chief of Public Safety. 

In his 31 years as Chief of Dalworthington Gardens, he has testified on numerous cases as an expert witness, pioneered the Texas model for DWI “No Refusal” program—which has been credited with lowering the fatality and DWI rate and is now being used as the model for several surroundings states; testified before the state legislature on a diverse array of issues relating to the Second Amendment and civilians carrying firearms.

He worked with the state legislature on Texas’ original concealed handgun license laws in the 1990’s, as well as the most recent open carry law that passed in 2015. Bill is also extremely honored to have helped the Chris Kyle Bill become a law in Texas—a bill that streamlines the process for military service men and women to become police officers.

He has a Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice and a Master’s Degree in Conflict Resolution. Bill is a graduate of the FBI National Academy, the Texas A&M Police Academy, and is a black belt in Tae Kwon Do. During Bill’s first term as Sheriff, he has created a Human Trafficking Unit, a Department of Intelligence, aggressive inmate service programs, several less than lethal programs, and numerous other training initiatives.  Both Intelligence and Human Trafficking have gained state and national prominence by being on the tip of the spear. Bill often is speaking publicly about various topics to: churches, civic organizations, colleges, and police related events.

Bill is married to Laura Waybourn and together have ten children, eight of which have been adopted. Bill and Laura are zealous and passionate advocates for the fatherless.

Join us as we discuss rising crime, mental health issues and the drugs driving it.

Five-time Emmy award winner Randy Wallace graduated from Eastern Kentucky University with a B.A. in Broadcasting. Randy came to Houston where he was quickly hired by KPRC Radio. He spent several years there, making a name for himself as a competitive reporter covering the police beat. In December of 1989, Randy was offered a job at KRIV FOX 26, and became one of the first reporters to appear on the station's highly acclaimed City Under Siege program. 

Randy Wallace is our guest as we break down the bad criminal justice reforms in Harris County and their causes.

Quote- Getting rid of the bail industry makes no sense.

The Honorable Ralph Strother retired from the 19th District Court in Waco, McClennan County, Texas.  He was on the bench for 22 years where he tried many high profile criminal cases.  He was appointed to the bench by then Governor George Bush.  

In this episode of the Bail Post, Judge Strother talks about his incredible career, his family and his insights for addressing increasing case backlogs, setting bail and bail reform.  Judge Strother has great insights about the process of setting bail.  As we see judges in Harris County denying that they are responsible for setting bail and blaming rising crime on the district attorney, it is refreshing to listen to a retired district court judge talk straight that  the judges have the responsibility under Texas law to set bail and to continue to oversee the bond after the defendant is released on bail. 

According to Judge Strother, if a judge believes that the defendant's current bond is not sufficient to ensure appearance, that the defendant is complying with the conditions on the bond or that public safety is at risk, the judge has the ability and the duty to revoke the bond, hold the bond insufficient or to raise the bond.

The Houston Police Officers Union recently issued a report addressing how misdemeanor bail reform was working in Harris County.  The report has some jaw dropping numbers:  76% failure to appear rate, 16% overall appearance rate, 72% of cases are dismissed and 176% growth in the backlog of cases over 10 years.

Office Griffith discusses the report, the district attorney's report issues last year stating some of these same things and the monitor's report which is issued every 4 months and says that misdemeanor reforms are working.  Why are the numbers so different in the monitor's report?  Listen to learn more.

Shelly Alexander is the President of the Tennessee Association of Professional Bail Agents (TAPBA).  She  was the Office Manager and a Bail Bondsman for Danny Blankenship Bonding until his sudden passing in 2017. At that time Shelly opened A Close Bonding Co., LLC, which has 17 agents in West and Middle Tennessee serving 23 counties. Ms. Alexander has been a volunteer for the Tennessee Association of Professional Bail Agents (TAPBA) for nine years and has served on the TAPBA Education Committee for eight years.  Ms. Alexander was born and raised in Reagan, TN. She currently resides in Lexington, TN. She is the mother to five (Jarrod, Jasmine,  Jordan, Alexis and Eli) of which two were adopted from the Department of Children Services in 2018 and have proven to be nothing less than amazing.  Jasmine and Jordan are both bail bondsmen. Also, Ms. Alexander is the proud MiMi of three grand girls and has a grandson on the way.

Will Rainey is a member of the board of directors of TAPBA and is the legislative committee chair.  Will Rainey is originally from Forrest City, Arkansas.  After he graduated from Rhodes College in Memphis in 1996, he became a teacher and coach in the Memphis City Schools.  He was later a Service Team Leader at Schneider Freight Company before he began working for a bail bond company in Memphis, Tennessee in 1999.  In 2006, he opened United Bonding Company, Inc in Memphis, Tennessee.

He later opened All About Bail Bonds, Inc., which does business in multiple counties in Western Tennessee.  He also owns Professional Bail Surety, Inc, a general insurance agency for Continental Heritage insurance company.  Mr. Rainey has enjoyed being active in youth sports and other community activities while raising his son. 

Join us as we discuss bail in Tennessee and the current Tennessee legislative session.

Topo Padilla is a second generation bondsmen from California.  On this episode of the Bail Post, Mr. Padilla discusses bail in California and other bail reform issues across the country.  

Mr. Padilla is the newly elected President of the Professional Bail Agents of the United States.