For 30 years,
When a person is arrested, they have an arraignment hearing. During this hearing, the charges against the defendant are formally announced and the judge declares how much bail is. The judge may allow a defendant to be released on their own recognizance, which means that instead of paying money to court, they sign papers agreeing to show up for court as scheduled. The judge can also deny bail to a defendant. The defendant then has no option but to remain in custody during the trial.
Those who are granted own recognizance release are generally those with no prior criminal history and were arrested for something minor. Those who are denied bail are generally hard-core, dangerous criminals. Everyone else is likely to be granted bail where they must pay a certain amount of money to the court in order to be released.
Bail is expensive, no matter if it is a few thousand dollars or tens of thousands of dollars. To help alleviate the stress and cost,
The defendant will be required to appear for court as they are scheduled. If they fail at this, then their bail bond and their release from custody are in jeopardy.