criminal case involving a U.S. citizen and a criminal case involving a non-citizen are radically different. A U.S. citizen need only worry about jail time, fines, and other court imposed conditions. Also, a U.S. citizen can pay a bond and remain at liberty while his case is pending.
Things can go very differently for a non-citizen. Once a non-citizen is arrested and taken into custody, immigration authorities are notified and have the power to place an “immigration hold” on the case. That means that even if the non-citizen pays his bond, he will be released to immigration custody rather than remaining at liberty.
If immigration charges are filed, an immigration bond will be set. At that point, the non-citizen can pay the immigration bond and remain out of custody during the pendency of his criminal and immigration cases.
Recently, the Colorado Senate considered, but ultimately rejected, a bill that would have penalized bail-bond firms in cases where their clients are ultimately deported as undocumented immigrants.
