A surety appealed form an order denying its motion to vacate a bail forfeiture and to exonerate a bond, arguing that the court lost jurisdiction to declare the bond forfeited when it didnt do so on the defendants initial failure to appear. The appellate court affirmed, holding that the trial court retained the jurisdiction after the initial nonappearance. The record showed that the trial court had a rational basis to believe that there may have been a reason for the nonappearance and therefore reason to continue to the next day without declaring a forfeiture of the bond. The court therefore had jurisdiction to declare the bond forfeited when the defendant failed to appear on the continued date.
Case Summaries