Bail Bonds in Bellmead, TX

Bellmead police, then the county jail

The Bellmead Police Department works out of 701 Maxfield Street, Bellmead, TX 76705, and its main line is 254-799-0251. Because Bellmead straddles I-35, Loop 340 and Highway 84, a lot of Bellmead arrests start as traffic stops on those roads rather than at a house.

Bellmead has no jail of its own for holding people pretrial. Adults arrested by Bellmead officers are booked into the McLennan County Jail at 3201 E Hwy 6. From the Bellmead police station that is a few minutes east, and it is the same building where every other McLennan County arrest lands.

• Bellmead Police Department: 701 Maxfield St, Bellmead, TX 76705 - 254-799-0251
• Bellmead Municipal Court: 3017 Bellmead Drive, Bellmead, TX 76705 - 254-799-2436
• McLennan County Jail: 3201 E Hwy 6, Waco, TX 76705

Bellmead Municipal Court versus the county courts

Bellmead runs its own municipal court. Court business is handled at Bellmead City Hall at 3015 Bellmead Drive, and judge's sessions, arraignments, show-cause hearings and trials are held at the municipal court building at 3017 Bellmead Drive. Payments and court questions go through 254-799-2436. That court's reach stops at fine-only offenses.

That court only handles Class C misdemeanors: traffic, city ordinances, fine-only offenses. Anything heavier moves downtown to the county courts at 501 Washington Ave in Waco. The reason to care is warrants. An ignored Bellmead citation becomes a warrant, and the next traffic stop on Loop 340 turns into a booking at the Highway 6 jail.

How the bond gets posted

A bail bond license in Texas is issued by the county, not the city. That means a licensed McLennan County bondsman can post bail for anyone booked into the county jail, whether the arresting agency was Bellmead PD, La Vega area school police, DPS or the sheriff's office.

Chapman's Bail Bonds is at 700 E. Waco Dr., which is straight down Waco Drive from the Bellmead line and a short hop from the jail. They guarantee bail posted and paperwork turned in within 30 to 45 minutes, and they answer the phone at all hours because most bookings happen at bad ones.

Cost, collateral and cosigning

Expect a premium customarily around 10 percent of the bond, up to roughly 15 percent when the bond is considered higher risk. On a small Bellmead misdemeanor bond that is often a few hundred dollars. On a felony bond it is real money, and payment plans are how most families handle it.

Collateral only enters the conversation on larger bonds. If a bondsman asks for a car title or a lien on property, ask what would make that unnecessary. Break 'Em Out Bail Bonds, the other featured partner at this address, keeps collateral negotiable and does not always require property, which is worth knowing before you sign anything over.

As cosigner you are agreeing that the defendant appears at every court date. Bring photo ID, proof of address and proof of employment, and be honest about the person's situation. A bondsman who knows the real story writes a bond that holds up.

Bellmead specifics worth knowing

Bellmead has a small-town footprint but sits directly against Waco, so its officers work busy commercial roads. The city grew up around the old Katy railroad shops and today it is the retail and highway corridor on Waco's northeast side, in La Vega ISD. Being on I-35 with Loop 340 running through it means Bellmead officers work a heavy volume of traffic and warrant stops.

If a Bellmead arrest happens tonight, the whole chain of events stays inside a few square miles: arrest in Bellmead, booking on E Hwy 6, bond posted from 700 E. Waco Dr. Call Chapman's Bail Bonds at 254-855-9885, give them the name and date of birth, and get it started.