Oklahoma § 59-1327 - Surrender of defendant prior to breach - Defendant in

§ 59-1327. Surrender of defendant prior to breach - Defendant in

custody in another jurisdiction - Recommitment of defendant Exoneration of bond in original court.

A. At any time before there has been a breach of the

undertaking in any type of bail provided herein, the surety or

bondsman or a licensed bail enforcer pursuant to a client contract

authorized by the Bail Enforcement and Licensing Act may surrender

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 59. Professions and Occupations

the defendant, or the defendant may surrender himself or herself, to

the official to whose custody the defendant was committed at the

time bail was taken, or to the official into whose custody the

defendant would have been given had he or she been committed. The

defendant may be surrendered without the return of premium for the

bond if he or she has been guilty of nonpayment of premium, changes

address without notifying his or her bondsman, conceals himself or

herself, leaves the jurisdiction of the court without the permission

of his or her bondsman, or violates his or her contract with the

bondsman in any way that does harm to the bondsman, or the surety,

or violates his or her obligation to the court. When a bondsman or

surety, or a licensed bail enforcer, surrenders a defendant pursuant

to this subsection, the bondsman or surety shall file written

notification of the surrender. After surrender, and upon filing of

written notification of the surrender with the court clerk, the bond

shall be exonerated and the clerk shall enter a minute in the case

exonerating the bond.

B. 1. If the defendant has been placed in custody of another

jurisdiction, the district attorney shall direct a hold order to the

official, judge or law enforcement agency where the defendant is in

custody. All reasonable expenses accrued in returning the defendant

to the original court shall be borne by the bondsman who posted the

bond with that court; provided, however, except for instances

whereby the defendant is transported by a contracted transport

company, reasonable expenses shall mean the actual miles traveled in

transporting the defendant at a rate equal to the current Internal

Revenue Service standard mileage rate. Upon application, the bond

in the original court shall be exonerated when the hold order is

placed and upon proof of guarantee of payment of expenses by the

bondsman.

2. Except as provided for in paragraph 3 of this subsection,

the premium for a bail bond shall be considered earned by the

bondsman or the insurer, as applicable, when the defendant on the

bond is released from custody and is not incarcerated in any

capacity. If the bond premium has not been earned pursuant to the

terms of this section, the payor of the premium or the depositor of

any collateral, as applicable, may request the return of the premium

or collateral given to the bondsman for the bond. The bondsman

shall return any premium and collateral without delay. If a

bondsman returns the premium to the payor pursuant to this section,

he or she may charge a usual, customary, and reasonable fee for his

or her services provided in the transaction.

3. The premium for a bail bond shall be considered earned by

the bondsman, regardless of whether the defendant on the bond is

released from custody, if the bondsman and the payor of the bond

premium have agreed in writing that the purpose of the bond is to

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 59. Professions and Occupations

secure the transfer of the defendant to another jurisdiction and the

defendant is in fact transferred to that jurisdiction.

C. If the defendant has been arrested on new charges and is in

the custody of the same jurisdiction in which the bondsman or surety

has posted an appearance bond or bonds for the defendant, and the

bond or bonds have not been exonerated, and certified copies of

bonds are not reasonably available, the bondsman or surety may

recommit the defendant to be held in custody on the charges for

which the bondsman or surety has previously posted appearance bonds

thereon, in accordance with the following procedure:

1. On a Recommitment of Defendant by Bondsman form approved by

the Administrative Office of the Courts, the bondsman or surety

shall personally affix his or her signature to an affidavit

attesting to the following:

a.

the defendant is presently in the custody of the

jurisdiction in which the bondsman or surety has

posted a bond or bonds,

b.

the case number, if any, assigned to each bond,

c.

that the bond or bonds have not been exonerated, and

d.

the specific charges and bond amount or amounts;

2. The bondsman or surety shall present the Recommitment of

Defendant by Bondsman form to the official in whose custody the

defendant is being held, and the official shall detain the defendant

in his or her custody, thereon, as upon a commitment, and by a

certificate in writing acknowledging the surrender; and

3. When a bondsman or surety recommits a defendant pursuant to

this subsection, the bondsman or surety shall file a written

notification thereof to the court, and after such notification, the

bond or bonds shall be exonerated, and the clerk shall enter a

minute in the case exonerating the bond or bonds.

D. 1. When a defendant does appear before the court as

required by law and enters a plea of guilty or nolo contendere, is

sentenced or a deferred sentence is granted as provided for in

Section 991c of Title 22 of the Oklahoma Statutes, or deferred

prosecution is granted as provided by law, in such event the

undertaking and bondsman and insurer shall be exonerated from

further liability.

2. A bond posted for a petition for revocation of a suspended

sentence, a petition for acceleration of a deferred sentence or any

violation of a probationary term shall be exonerated by operation of

law when:

a.

the defendant has confessed, stipulated or otherwise

agreed to the factual basis of the violation of

probation,

b.

the suspended sentence is revoked in whole or part,

c.

the deferred sentence is accelerated in whole or part,

or

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 59. Professions and Occupations

d.

any additional sanction is imposed by the court.

E. The bond shall be exonerated by operation of law in any case

in which the defendant has been arrested on new charges or on any

warrant in the same jurisdiction in which the bondsman or insurer

has posted the appearance bond or bonds for the defendant, and the

defendant has been subsequently released on his or her own personal

recognizance or a pretrial release has been authorized by the court.

F. The bond shall be exonerated by operation of law in any case

in which the defendant has been arrested and there is an added

charge to a case that would result in a higher fine or longer term

of sentence if convicted, or an amendment to a charge that would

result in a higher fine or longer term of sentence if convicted;

provided, however, any premium paid by the defendant to the bondsman

or insurer from the original charge shall be at the same premium

rate and shall be credited to the defendant if the same bondsman or

insurer posts the appearance bond or bonds on the added or amended

charge.

G. For purposes of this section, a “usual, customary, and

reasonable fee” means a charge to the payor that is based on the

amount of time spent by the bondsman or his or her employees

researching, drafting, and executing the bail bond. Such fee shall

be detailed in a written document provided to the payor.

H. The court shall not issue an order modifying the terms of a

previously set bond unless the order has also been signed by the

bail bondsman, bail bondsman surety, or both acknowledging the

changes made to the bond prior to the defendant’s release. Failure

to provide this notice shall exonerate the bond by operation of law.

Added by Laws 1965, c. 184, § 27, eff. Jan. 1, 1966. Amended by

Laws 1991, c. 139, § 3, emerg. eff. April 29, 1991; Laws 1993, c.

170, § 6, eff. Sept. 1, 1993; Laws 1999, c. 386, § 4, eff. Nov. 1,

1999; Laws 2002, c. 390, § 19, emerg. eff. June 4, 2002; Laws 2003,

c. 66, § 1, eff. Nov. 1, 2003; Laws 2005, c. 71, § 1, eff. Nov. 1,

2005; Laws 2013, c. 407, § 23, eff. Nov. 1, 2013; Laws 2016, c. 16,

§ 2, eff. Nov. 1, 2016; Laws 2019, c. 270, § 1, eff. Nov. 1, 2019;

Laws 2021, c. 368, § 4, eff. Nov. 1, 2021; Laws 2022, c. 170, § 2,

eff. Nov. 1, 2022; Laws 2023, c. 127, § 1, eff. Nov. 1, 2023; Laws

2024, c. 327, § 2, eff. Nov. 1, 2024.