Illinois’s Bail Bond Fee Is Constitutional

A 1 percent processing fee Illinois placed on bail bonds was constitutional, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit held Oct. 5 (Platt v. Brown, 2017 BL 357656, 7th Cir., No. 17-1830, 10/5/17).

The fee didn’t violate procedural and substantive due process or equal protection, the court’s opinion by Judge Joel M. Flaum said.

Under Illinois law, when a criminal defendant executed a 10 percent bail, 10 percent of that amount (or 1 percent of the total bail amount) was paid to the state.

The bail for Michael Platt, who was charged with murder, was $2 ...