1. Applicable Statutes

Massachusetts General Laws: Crimes, Punishments and Proceedings in Criminal Cases, Title II. Proceedings in Criminal Cases Chapter 276: Search Warrants, Rewards, Fugitives from Justice, Arrest, Examination, Commitment and Bail.

Local rules set by Superior Courts govern professional bondsmen.

2. Licensing Requirements

A professional bondsman is any person who becomes bail or surety for any defendant in the criminal process; whether it be as agent for any corporation, or person, surety agent or principal, who has received, been promised, or expects to receive a fee, pay or reward for acting as bail or surety.

There are no licensing requirements for professional bondsmen in Massachusetts , however they must be approved and registered with the Superior Court. The Superior Court will periodically establish rules pertaining to the conduct of professional bondsmen. [M.G.L. § 276 – 61B]

3. Notice of Forfeiture

If the accused fails to appear, the court shall declare the bond forfeited and order his immediate arrest without warrant. Recovery may be had on such bonds or undertakings in the name of the commonwealth as in the case of other bonds or undertakings given by persons accused in criminal proceedings within this commonwealth. [M.G.L. § 276 – 71]

4. Forfeiture to Judgment

Upon the defendant's failure to appear, and forfeiture of the bond, the court may initiate process against the surety immediately. Any professional bondsmen who fails to pay a judgment against him within 30 days shall have his registration with the court revoked. [M.G.L. § 276 – 61B]

5. Forfeiture Defenses

If, by the act of God, of the government of the United States , of any state or by sentence of law, bail are unable without their fault to surrender their principal, they shall, upon motion before final judgment on scire facias, be exonerated and discharged by the court, with or without costs as the court deems equitable. [M.G.L. § 276 –70]

6. Remission

Bail may surrender their principal at any time after default made upon the recognizance, or the principal may surrender himself, and the court where the default is recorded may, upon application, remit the whole or any part of the penalty, if satisfied that the default of the principal was not with the connivance or consent of the bail. [M.G.L. § 276 – 69]

7. Bail Agent's Arrest Authority

A bondsman may “surrender his principal” at any time, but the extent of his arrest authority under MA law is unclear.

8. Other noteworthy provisions

9. Noteworthy Appellate Decisions

Commonwealth v. Wilkinson , 415 Mass. 402, 613 N.E.2d 914 ( Mass. 1993).

Agent of Oklahoma bail bondsman was indicted for kidnapping and for assault with a deadly weapon, arising from his apprehension of fugitive in the Commonwealth and the removal of fugitive to Oklahoma . The Commonwealth filed pretrial motion to preclude defendant from raising affirmative defense of "lawful authority" at trial and further requested that jury be instructed on requirements of the Uniform Criminal Extradition Act. The Superior Court, Plymouth County granted Commonwealth's motion and reported questions of law to the Appeals Court . Defendant applied for direct appellate review which was granted. The Supreme Judicial Court held that: (1) the Uniform Criminal Extradition Act has abrogated common-law right of foreign bondsmen to seize a fugitive within the Commonwealth without resort to the legal system for surrender in another state; (2) foreign bondsman seeking to apprehend fugitive located in Massachusetts and remove him to any other jurisdiction must first comply with provisions of the Act; and (3) decision could not be applied retroactively to defendant, and thus he could offer as defense to charges pending against him that he possessed lawful authority to remove fugitive from the Commonwealth without complying with the Act. Reversed and remanded.

Commonwealth v. Stuyvesant Ins. Co. , 366 Mass. 611, 321 N.E.2d 811 ( Mass. 1975).

Commonwealth brought seven actions against surety on defaulted bail bonds. The Superior Court found for the Commonwealth in the full face amount of the bonds of $7,000 and the surety filed a consolidated bill of exceptions. The Supreme Judicial Court held that the Commonwealth breaches its contract with a surety by interfering with the surety's custody of bail bond principal and that where trial judge, after removing default for prior nonappearance, remanded the principal to jail to await arrival of surety's agent, he breached the Commonwealth's contract on the bonds and, in the absence of the surety's agent's acquiescence in court's attempt to continue bail or to create a new bail contract, the surety was not liable for the principal's subsequent nonappearance. Exceptions sustained.

Commonwealth v. Tsouprakakis , 166 N.E. 855, 267 Mass. 496 ( Mass. 1929).

Person who at same moment becomes bail for several defendants becomes bail on more than one "separate occasion" within statute relative to registration of professional bondsman.

Reed v. Police Court of Lowell , 52 N.E. 633, 172 Mass. 427 ( Mass. 1899).

Where, after default on recognizance to police court and judgment forfeiting bail, prisoner was recaptured, waived examination and was committed for trial before superior court, by which he was convicted, judgment of forfeiture was not nullified.

10. Bounty Hunter Provisions

There are no provisions pertaining to bounty hunters at this time.