Failure to Appear Bail Bonds

Missing a court date is not just a scheduling problem. In California, failing to appear can be a separate crime in its own right — charged on top of whatever the original case was. Two different Penal Code sections cover it, and which one applies depends on how the person was released in the first place.

PC 1320 — failure to appear after own-recognizance release

The statute makes it a crime to willfully fail to appear “in order to evade the process of the court” after being released on own recognizance.

• Misdemeanor case: a person charged with or convicted of a misdemeanor who was released on their own recognizance and willfully fails to appear to evade the court is guilty of a misdemeanor.
• Felony case: the same conduct after release on own recognizance in a felony case is guilty of a felony, punishable by a fine not exceeding $5,000, or imprisonment under Penal Code § 1170(h) or in county jail for not more than one year, or both.

Both subdivisions carry the same presumption: it shall be presumed that a defendant who willfully fails to appear within 14 days of the assigned date intended to evade the process of the court.

PC 1320.5 — failure to appear after release on bail

This is the section that applies when a bail bond was posted. A person charged with or convicted of a felony, released from custody on bail, who willfully fails to appear in order to evade the process of the court, is guilty of a felony.

The penalty is a fine not exceeding $10,000 — double the § 1320 figure — or imprisonment under Penal Code § 1170(h) or in county jail for not more than one year, or both.

The 14-day language differs slightly and is worth reading carefully: willful failure to appear within 14 days of the assigned date may be found to have been for the purpose of evading the court, rather than the stronger presumption in § 1320.

Source: California Legislative Information, Penal Code § 1320 and § 1320.5. We are a bail agency, not a law firm, and this is general information rather than advice about any particular case.

What actually happens after a missed appearance

1. The court is notified. The case is called, the person is not there, and the record reflects it.
2. A bench warrant may issue. See our warrant bail bonds page for how bench warrants work and when they can be issued.
3. Bail may be forfeited. If a bond was posted, the court can order it forfeited — which starts the Penal Code § 1305 forfeiture clock, a 180-day period with its own deadlines and remedies.
4. A new charge may be filed. Under § 1320 or § 1320.5, depending on how the person was released.

If a bond was posted, there is a window

This is the part most families and many defendants do not know. When a bail bond is forfeited after a failure to appear, Penal Code § 1305 provides a 180-day period — measured from the forfeiture, or from the mailing of the notice of forfeiture where notice is required, plus five days — in which courts can, in defined circumstances, set the forfeiture aside and exonerate the bond.

The statute lists several routes: the defendant appearing in court, a surrender or arrest in the underlying case inside or outside the county, a hold placed on the case while the defendant is in custody elsewhere, and tolling for temporary disability. A separate section, § 1305.4, allows a good-cause motion to extend the period. Our § 1305 reference page sets all of them out subdivision by subdivision.

That window has hard deadlines, and it closes. Acting early is genuinely different from acting late. If you posted a bond for someone who has missed a date, or you are the person who missed it, call us before assuming the worst — we deal with this process regularly and can tell you plainly where things stand.

Should someone with a missed date turn themselves in?

We are not attorneys and cannot advise you on that decision — it is a question for a defense attorney, and worth asking one before doing anything. What we can tell you is the practical sequence we see work: arranging the bond before anyone walks into a courthouse or a station is almost always better than arranging it afterwards. Turning up without a bond in place means going through the full booking process and waiting.

Where they will be held and where the case is heard

North Orange County matters are associated with the North Justice Center in Fullerton. That is what the courthouse handles, not a case assignment — the release paperwork and case record control where a case is actually heard. County custody runs through the Intake Release Center in Santa Ana, with transfers possible to Theo Lacy. In Los Angeles County, custody runs through the Inmate Reception Center for men and the Century Regional Detention Facility for women.

City arrests may begin at a local facility first — see Fullerton, Whittier, Santa Ana, Buena Park, Placentia, Brea or La Habra.

Traffic failures to appear

Many bench warrants start at Orange County’s traffic courthouse rather than a criminal one — see Costa Mesa Justice Complex. Dealing with the warrant before an arrest is nearly always shorter and cheaper than dealing with it afterwards.

Finding the date before it is missed

If the paperwork is gone, how to find someone’s court date sets out what each county’s case-access service shows and what to do when nothing appears.

Related situations

• Warrant bail bonds — bench warrants and arrest warrants, and why they are not the same thing.
• Probation violation bail — a different process entirely, where release runs through the court rather than a bail schedule.
• Felony bail and misdemeanor bail.
• Domestic violence bail, where the § 1270.1 hearing requirement adds another layer.

Common questions

Is failing to appear a separate crime in California?

It can be. Penal Code § 1320 and § 1320.5 make willfully failing to appear in order to evade the process of the court a chargeable offense, separate from the underlying case.

What is the difference between PC 1320 and PC 1320.5?

§ 1320 applies to someone released on their own recognizance; § 1320.5 applies to someone released on bail in a felony case. The maximum fine under § 1320 is $5,000 for a felony case; under § 1320.5 it is $10,000.

What does the 14-day rule mean?

Under § 1320 it is presumed that willfully failing to appear within 14 days of the assigned date was intended to evade the court. Under § 1320.5 that failure may be found to have been for that purpose.

Does missing one court date automatically mean jail?

Not automatically, and outcomes depend entirely on the case and the court. Both statutes turn on willfully failing to appear in order to evade the court, which is a question for the court and for a defense attorney, not for us.

Can a forfeited bond be reinstated?

Under Penal Code § 1305 there is a 180-day period after forfeiture during which the position can often still be addressed, and subdivision (c)(4) allows a court to reinstate the bail on the same bond in defined circumstances rather than exonerate it. Call us as early as possible — timing genuinely matters here.

Where we work from

Our three offices are open 24 hours a day, every day of the year: Anaheim, Brea and La Habra. We post bail throughout Orange County and Los Angeles County and have done since 1997.