Bounty Hunters

The State of Illinois outlawed the commercial bail bond industry, including the practice of bounty hunting, in 1963. In other states, people who have been charged can take out loans to pay their bail. Bounty hunters track down people who have avoided paying back their bail bond. Under Illinois law, it is illegal for a bounty hunter to capture you in Illinois to take you in for a bounty.

Although most other states allow the commercial bond industry to operate, bounty hunters are only legal in two countries in the world: the US and the Philippines. In most nations, the bail process—including bonds—operates at the government level. Rather than paying your bail with a loan from a private, for-profit company, you instead work through the legal system. This allows more oversight of the bail process and avoids the use of bondsmen.

Bounty Hunting and Illinois Law

The statute enacted to ban bounty hunting in Illinois reads, “no bail bondsman from any state may seize or transport unwillingly any person found in this State who is allegedly in violation of a bail bond posted in some other state.” As a resident of Illinois, you are entitled to the protections the State offers against unscrupulous bounty collection practices.

If a bounty hunter from another state has captured you and taken you back for a bond supposedly in your name, you deserve the help of a skilled defense attorney. Even if the bounty hunter is from a state where bounty hunting is legal, in Illinois they have committed a crime, and you have been unnecessarily kidnapped. A lawyer can defend you against their charges and bring them to justice.

Contact Us

To discuss your case with the experienced Champaign defense attorneys of Bruno Law Offices, contact us today at (217) 328-6000.