The founders of the country recognized one of the common abuses of European systems at the time (we're talking 18th century, here) was that people would be arrested by the crown and charged with a crime, but then had to wait long periods of time before there was an actual trial where the state had to prove the defendant's guilt. Sometimes years.
So the sixth amendment to he US constitution guarantees everyone the right to a speedy trial. Unfortunately, evidence takes a long time to prepare, and the trials themselves need to be scheduled based on available resources.
Technically when you post bail you're waiving your right to a speedy trial, and in exchange you can go about your business until the trial starts. The money is an extra incentive to show up - you lose it if you don't show. If you've done something particularly heinous, where the judge thinks you'll run no matter how much you have at stake, you won't be offered bail at all, and you'll sit in jail until the trial. I suspect in that case there's maximum amount of time they can keep you before trial, but I don't know what it is.
Since most people don't have a lot of cash handy they borrow the money from a business that specializes in such things, the bail bondsman. The bail bondsman gets his money back when you show up for trial, and if you run away he'll generally track you down and forcibly bring you back.
So the sixth amendment to he US constitution guarantees everyone the right to a speedy trial. Unfortunately, evidence takes a long time to prepare, and the trials themselves need to be scheduled based on available resources.
Technically when you post bail you're waiving your right to a speedy trial, and in exchange you can go about your business until the trial starts. The money is an extra incentive to show up - you lose it if you don't show. If you've done something particularly heinous, where the judge thinks you'll run no matter how much you have at stake, you won't be offered bail at all, and you'll sit in jail until the trial. I suspect in that case there's maximum amount of time they can keep you before trial, but I don't know what it is.
Since most people don't have a lot of cash handy they borrow the money from a business that specializes in such things, the bail bondsman. The bail bondsman gets his money back when you show up for trial, and if you run away he'll generally track you down and forcibly bring you back.