Utah Uniform Bail Schedule: Amounts, Deviations, and Denials

The Utah bail schedule sets default bail amounts based on the class or degree of the charged offense, ranging from roughly $110 for an infraction up to about $25,000 for a first-degree felony that carries a mandatory minimum sentence. Those figures come from the financial condition schedule a judge must consult under Utah Code 77-20-205.5 whenever a monetary condition of release is imposed.¹ They are starting points. A judge has broad authority to raise the number, lower it, or replace the financial requirement with nonfinancial conditions entirely.

Default Bail Amounts by Offense Class

The schedule published by the Utah Courts assigns these approximate baseline amounts for offenses not otherwise given a specific dollar figure.

Infractions and Misdemeanors

Infraction: about $110. Minor offenses sitting below misdemeanor level. Driving without a valid license under Utah Code 53-3-202 falls here, not in Class C, even though it’s commonly assumed to be a misdemeanor.²
Class C misdemeanor: about $350. Covers minor offenses like disorderly conduct.
Class B misdemeanor: about $690. Common examples are simple assault and low-value theft.
Class A misdemeanor: about $1,960. Includes assault causing substantial bodily injury and certain drug possession charges.³

Felonies

Third-degree felony: about $5,000. Non-dwelling burglary and certain controlled substance violations sit here.
Second-degree felony: about $10,000. Dwelling burglary and sexual exploitation of a minor are examples.⁴⁵
First-degree felony: about $20,000, rising to $25,000 when the offense carries a mandatory minimum sentence. Aggravated robbery is a first-degree felony.⁶

A first-time defendant with stable employment and no record may see bail set close to the baseline. Someone with multiple prior convictions, open cases, or a history of missed court dates can face a much higher figure for the same charge.

What Makes a Judge Move Off the Baseline

Utah Code 77-20-205 directs the judge to look at both the offense and the defendant personally when setting the actual amount.¹ Offense factors include whether violence was involved and the vulnerability of any victim or witness. Personal factors include:

Character and mental health.
Family and community ties. Strong local roots cut against flight risk.
Employment. Steady work signals reliability.
Financial resources. The judge must consider the defendant’s ability to pay, not just the severity of the charge, when imposing a financial condition.
Criminal history, including drug or alcohol problems and prior failures to appear.
Whether the alleged offense occurred while the defendant was on probation or parole.

The judge can also weigh whether others in the community are willing to help supervise the defendant and whether the defendant will enter treatment.¹ Financial bail is only one tool. Nonfinancial conditions like electronic monitoring, no-contact orders, drug testing, curfews, travel restrictions, and surrender of firearms can be imposed instead of, or alongside, a cash figure.

When Bail Can Be Denied Outright

The schedule only matters if the defendant is eligible for bail at all. Utah Code 77-20-201 lets a judge deny pretrial release entirely in several situations:⁷

A capital felony such as aggravated murder, when there is substantial evidence supporting the charge.⁸
A felony allegedly committed while on parole, probation, or existing bail for another felony, with substantial evidence of the new charge.
Any felony where the court finds by clear and convincing evidence that the defendant poses a substantial danger or is likely to flee, even considering available release conditions.
Any felony where the defendant violated a material condition of a prior release.
A domestic violence offense where clear and convincing evidence shows substantial danger to the alleged victim.
A DUI resulting in death or serious bodily injury, where the court finds the defendant would endanger the community.
A DUI committed while on parole or probation for a prior DUI, or while already on bail for a pending DUI charge.

Clear and convincing evidence is a higher bar than the usual preponderance standard, so the prosecution has to show real evidence of danger or flight risk, not just argue that the charge sounds serious.

How to Post the Amount Once It’s Set

Utah Code 77-20-4 allows four posting methods:⁹

Cash for the full amount paid to the court. Returned at the end of the case regardless of verdict, provided the defendant made every required appearance.
Surety bond posted through a licensed bail bond agent, who guarantees the full amount in exchange for a nonrefundable premium.
Written undertaking without sureties, essentially a personal promise to pay, at the judge’s discretion.
Credit or debit card, when the judge or bail commissioner allows it.

A judge can restrict the defendant to a specific posting method, such as cash only, when the defendant previously failed to appear on a bond involving a violent offense or when a prior bond was forfeited.⁹

What a Bail Bond Agent Charges

Most defendants cannot post the full amount in cash and use a bond agent instead. Utah regulates agent premiums through the state insurance department, and the premium must fall between 10% and 20% of the total bail amount.¹⁰ On a $10,000 bail, that works out to $1,000 to $2,000 paid to the agent.

The premium is not refundable. It stays with the agent whether the charges are dropped, the defendant is acquitted, or the case drags on for years. If the defendant fails to appear, the agent becomes liable for the full amount and will typically hire a recovery agent. Most agents also require collateral such as a car title or property deed before writing the bond, and that collateral can be seized if the defendant skips court.

Asking for a Lower Amount

A defendant who cannot afford the figure in the initial pretrial status order has a statutory right to ask the court to lower it. Utah Code 77-20-207 allows a motion to modify when a financial condition was imposed and the defendant is unable to pay within seven days.¹¹ When the motion rests on inability to pay, the law creates a rebuttable presumption that the defendant really cannot afford the amount, shifting the burden to the prosecution to prove otherwise.

If the judge agrees the defendant cannot pay, the court can reduce the financial condition or replace it with nonfinancial conditions like check-ins, electronic monitoring, or travel restrictions.¹¹ Under Utah Rule of Criminal Procedure 7, a motion to modify the initial order can be made at any time with sufficient notice to the opposing party; any later motion requires showing a material change in circumstances.¹² The hearing can be combined with a preliminary hearing or another pretrial proceeding, and the judge weighs the same 77-20-205 factors used in the original decision.¹

What Happens If a Court Date Is Missed

Missing a court appearance creates two problems at once: the bail is forfeited, and a new criminal charge is filed.

Utah Code 77-20-501 treats any failure to appear as a breach of bond conditions, subjecting the bail to forfeiture.¹³ The court must issue a bench warrant within 28 days and notify the surety. If the defendant appears within seven days of the missed date, the court may reinstate the bond. After that window, reinstatement requires the surety’s consent, and most bond companies will not agree without significant additional payment or collateral.

Failure to appear is also a separate crime under Utah Code 76-8-312, with the penalty tracking the severity of the underlying case:¹⁴

Felony case: failure to appear is a third-degree felony.
Misdemeanor case: failure to appear is a Class B misdemeanor.
Infraction case: failure to appear is an infraction.

These penalties stack on the original charge. A defendant out on bail for a second-degree felony who misses court now faces the original charge plus a new third-degree felony, and any new bail determination will reflect that added risk.

1
Utah Legislature. Utah Code 77-20-205 – Pretrial Release
2
Utah Legislature. Utah Code 53-3-202 – Drivers Must Be Licensed
3
Utah Legislature. Utah Code 76-5-102 – Assault
4
Utah Legislature. Utah Code 76-6-202 – Burglary
5
Utah Legislature. Utah Code 76-5b-201 – Sexual Exploitation of a Minor – Offenses
6
Utah Legislature. Utah Code 76-6-302 – Aggravated Robbery
7
Utah Legislature. Utah Code 77-20-201 – Right to Bail – Capital Felony
8
Utah Legislature. Utah Code 76-5-202 – Aggravated Murder
9
Utah Legislature. Utah Code 77-20-4 – Bail to Be Posted in Cash, by Credit or Debit Card, or by Written Undertaking
10
Cornell Law Institute. Utah Admin Code R590-196-4 – Premium and Fee Standards
11
Utah Legislature. Utah Code 77-20-207 – Modification of Pretrial Status Order – Failure to Appear
12
Utah Courts. URCRP Rule 7 – Initial Proceedings for Class A Misdemeanors and Felonies
13
Utah Legislature. Utah Code 77-20-501 – Liability on a Bail Bond – Failure to Appear
14
Utah Legislature. Utah Code 76-8-312 – Failure to Appear