Personal Recognisance (PR) Bond

Subject – Polity

Context – Assam editor facing sedition charge released on PR bond

Concept –

A Personal Recognizance Bond, better known as a “PR Bond“, is granted by a court judge once the review of an individual’s case and criminal history has been completed during a pretrial hearing.
In most cases where PR Bonds are granted, the judge has determined that individual does not pose a threat to the community, and has ties to the community that help the court decide whether or not he/she is a flight risk (e.g., employed, a student, a community leader, etc.).
The benefit of obtaining a PR Bond is that although a bail amount is set by a judge, the bonded party won’t have to pay anything and is required to be present for all court appearances. Keep in mind that if the individual doesn’t uphold their end of the personal recognizance bond (by missing court dates or leaving town), that person will have to pay the full bail amount and may be rearrested in the future.

3 Things to Know About PR Bonds

Delayed release from jail – The process of getting out of jail with a PR Bond is longer than with a bail bondsman. You must participate in an interview with a pretrial officer.
PR Bonds are granted exclusively by judges – Even if you have a lawyer to speak on your behalf, the only way to get a PR Bond is with the approval of a court judge.
Undisclosed additional costs – Although you don’t have to pay the full bail amount once you’ve acquired a PR Bond, there may be several undisclosed costs associated with the conditions of the judge-approved bond such as court-ordered classes that must be paid for at your own expense.

How bail bonds work?

Bail vs Bond –