77-20-504. Exoneration of a bail bond.
(1) The court shall exonerate a bail bond if:
(a)
(i) a defendant, who has posted monetary bail by a bail bond, fails to appear before the appropriate court as required;
(ii) notice of the defendant's failure to appear is not emailed to the surety as listed on the bail bond as described in Subsection 77-20-501(2) or (3); and
(iii) the surety's current name and email address, or the bail bond agency's current name and email address, are listed on the bail bond in the court's file;
(b) the defendant is arrested and booked into a county jail booking facility pursuant to a warrant for failure to appear on the original charges for which the bail bond was issued and the surety provides written proof of the arrest and booking to the court and the prosecuting attorney;
(c) the court recalls a warrant for failure to appear due to the defendant's having paid the fine and before entry of a judgment of forfeiture of the bail bond;
(d) the surety provides written proof to the court and the prosecuting attorney that the defendant is in custody and the surety has served the defendant's bail bond revocation on the custodial authority; or
(e) unless the court makes a finding of good cause why the bail bond should not be exonerated:
(i) the surety has delivered the defendant to the county jail booking facility in the county where the original charge or charges are pending;
(ii) the defendant has been released on a bail bond secured from a subsequent surety for the original charge and the failure to appear;
(iii) after an arrest, the defendant has escaped from jail or has been released on the defendant's own recognizance under a court order regulating jail capacity or by a sheriff's release under Section 17-72-402;
(iv) the surety has transported or agreed to pay for the transportation of the defendant from a location outside of the county back to the county where the original charge is pending and the payment is in an amount equal to the cost of government transportation under Section 76-3-201; or
(v) the surety demonstrates, by a preponderance of the evidence, that:
(A) at the time the surety issued the bail bond, the surety made reasonable efforts to determine that the defendant was legally present in the United States;
(B) a reasonable person would have concluded, based on the surety's determination, that the defendant was legally present in the United States; and
(C) the surety has failed to bring the defendant before the court because the defendant is in federal custody or has been deported.
(2) Under circumstances not otherwise provided for in Subsection (1), the court may exonerate the bail bond if the court finds:
(a) that the prosecuting attorney has been given reasonable notice of a surety's motion to exonerate the bail bond; and
(b) there is good cause for the bail bond to be exonerated.
(3) If a surety's bail bond has been exonerated under Subsection (1) or (2) and the surety remains liable for the cost of transportation of the defendant, the surety may take custody of the defendant for the purpose of transporting the defendant to the jurisdiction where the charge is pending.
(4) If the defendant is subject to extradition or other means by which the state can return the defendant to law enforcement custody within the court's jurisdiction, and the surety gives notice under Subsection 77-20-502(4)(a), the surety's bail bond shall be exonerated:
(a) if the prosecuting attorney elects in writing not to extradite the defendant immediately; and
(b) if the prosecuting attorney elects in writing to extradite the defendant, to the extent the bail bond exceeds the reasonable, actual, or estimated costs to extradite and return the defendant to law enforcement custody within the court's jurisdiction, upon the occurrence of the earlier of:
(i) the prosecuting attorney's lodging a detainer on the defendant; or
(ii) 60 days after the day on which the surety gives notice to the prosecuting attorney under Subsection 77-20-502(4)(a) if the defendant remains in custody of the same authority during that 60-day time period.
(5)
(a) Except as provided in Subsection (6), the court shall exonerate the bail bond, without motion, upon sentencing the defendant.
(b) If the defendant's sentence includes commitment to a jail or prison, the court shall exonerate the bail bond when the defendant appears at the appropriate jail or prison, unless the judge does not require the defendant to begin the commitment within seven days, in which case the bail bond is exonerated upon sentencing.
(c) For purposes of this Subsection (5), an order of the court accepting a plea in abeyance agreement and holding that plea in abeyance in accordance with Title 77, Chapter 2a, Pleas in Abeyance, is considered to be the same as a sentencing upon a guilty plea.
(d) Any suspended or deferred sentencing is not the responsibility of the surety and the bail bond is exonerated without any motion, upon acceptance of the court and the defendant of a plea in abeyance, probation, fine payments, post sentencing reviews, or any other deferred sentencing reviews or any other deferred sentencing agreement.
(6) If a surety issues a bail bond after sentencing, the surety is liable on the bail bond during all proceedings and for all court appearances required of the defendant up to and including the defendant's appearance to commence serving the sentence imposed under Subsection (5).
Amended by Chapter 17, 2025 Special Session 1
