What to do the first time someone you love is arrested

When a loved one is behind bars, every minute matters. That’s true. It’s also true that the worst thing you can do in the first hour is rush blindly. This is a process. Knowing the process is what gets people out faster.

Before you call anyone

Take a breath. Find a pen. Write down the basic facts of the call:

• The caller’s name and the agency they’re calling from
• The detainee’s full legal name
• The booking facility — city and county matter
• The charge, if they tell you
• A return number, if they give one

If the detainee was the one who called, ask whether a booking number has been issued yet. Booking is the administrative process the jail uses to record who is in custody — it has to complete before bail can be posted, and the booking number is the master key to everything that follows.

The first 30 minutes

Once you have basic information:

1. Look up the booking on the county’s inmate search page. Almost every Colorado county has one. Confirm the name, the booking number, and the bond amount the court has set.
2. Call a Colorado-licensed bondsman. The phone is faster than a form and a bondsman who answers live can usually find the booking even if you didn’t.
3. Get clarity on the premium. Standard 15%, statutory 10% for DUI, reduced 10% on bonds over $5,000 with an approved cosigner. There should be no other fees.
4. Ask about the timeline. Average release is 2 to 4 hours after the bond is posted. DUI carries a mandatory 8-hour hold from booking.

What the bondsman handles, what you handle

The bondsman handles the bond paperwork, the payment, and the posting. We do this on your phone — documents go to your email or text, you sign electronically, and the bond posts at the holding facility.

You handle the cosigner conversation. Cosigning is a financial commitment: if the defendant misses court, the cosigner is on the hook for the full bond amount. We will walk through exactly what that means before anyone signs anything.

After release

Two appointments matter immediately:

• The first advisement hearing, usually within 48 to 72 hours of arrest. Missing it is a fast path to a bench warrant.
• All subsequent court dates. Missing court is the most common way bonds get forfeited. The court doesn’t reschedule; it issues a warrant.

If transportation is an issue, set the alarm now. The defendant’s job is showing up to court — the bondsman’s job is making sure they’re out long enough to do so.

What we will not do

We won’t pretend a case is simpler than it is. We won’t take cash-only bonds set by courts — those have to be paid to the court directly, and we will tell you so. We don’t write bonds outside Colorado. If the booking is in a state we can’t help with, we will say that on the call rather than waste your time.

The whole point of having a bondsman is having someone who has done this hundreds of times stand between you and the next moving piece. Call (720) 984-2245 and we will tell you what’s next.