If someone you love just got booked into Broward County Main Jail, here is exactly what to do, step by step, from someone who does this every day.
Getting that phone call is scary. Maybe it is the middle of the night, you are not thinking straight, and all you want is to get your person home. Take a breath. People get bailed out of Broward County Main Jail every single day, and the process is more straightforward than it feels right now. Below is the plain-English version of how it works, and what you can do tonight to move things along.
Mz Bee's Bail Bonds answers the phone 24/7, and a licensed agent posts bonds at the Main Jail at all hours. You do not have to figure this out alone. If you would rather just talk to a real person right now, call (305) 783-7006 and we will walk you through it.
After an arrest in Broward County, your person is usually taken to the Broward County Main Jail at 555 SE 1st Ave in Fort Lauderdale. Booking is the intake process: fingerprints, a photo, a health screening, and a check for any other holds or warrants. This part takes time, often several hours, and there is not much anyone can do to speed it up. It is normal, and it does not mean anything is wrong.
Some people are released straight from booking. Others have to see a judge at a first appearance hearing, where the judge sets the bond amount. Once there is a bond amount, you can post bail. Our team handles bonds across Broward County bail bonds, so wherever your person ends up in the county system, we can usually help.
Before you can bail anyone out, you need three things: their full legal name, the charges they are being held on, and the bond amount the judge set. The Broward Sheriff's Office runs an online inmate search and an arrest search where you can look this up by name. You can also call the jail directly. If looking it all up feels like too much right now, that is fine, just call us with the name and date of birth and we will help track down the booking details and the bond. Finding the charges is something we do constantly.
You have two ways to post bail. You can pay the full bond amount in cash to the court, which you get back later if your person makes all their court dates. Most families do not have thousands of dollars in cash sitting around, which is where a bail bond comes in.
With a bond, you pay a bail agent a premium and the agent posts the full amount for you. In Florida, the premium is set by state law at 10% of the bond amount (15% on federal bonds), usually with a $100 minimum. So a $5,000 bond costs $500 to post. That premium is the fee for the service and is not refundable, because the agent is putting up the whole bond on your behalf. The good news is that Mz Bee's offers payment plans and no-collateral bonds in most cases, so you may not need to come up with even the premium all at once. You can read more about how bail works on our bail information page.
To post a Broward County Main Jail bail bonds request, the person signing for the bond (called the indemnitor) generally needs a valid photo ID and basic information about the person in custody, their full name, date of birth, and the jail facility. We will go over the paperwork with you and explain every line before you sign anything. There are no surprises and no fine-print games. If you have questions about cost or payment before you commit, just ask. We would rather you feel comfortable than rushed.
Here is the honest answer everyone wants: once the bond is posted, release from the Main Jail usually takes a few hours. We say usually because the timeline is in the jail's hands, not ours, and it depends on how busy booking is and where your person is in the process. Late nights and weekends can run slower. What we can promise is that we move fast on our end, an agent is available around the clock, and we get the bond posted as soon as the paperwork is done. We will keep you in the loop the whole time so you are not left wondering.
Getting out is the first step, not the last. The bond is a promise that your person will show up to every court date. Missing court can lead to a warrant and the loss of the bond, so put every court date on the calendar and treat them as non-negotiable. If you ever have a question about an upcoming date or what to expect, our team is here to help you stay on track.
Broward County runs more than just the Main Jail. People are also held at the Joseph V. Conte Facility and the North Broward Bureau in Pompano Beach, and at the Paul Rein Detention Facility, also in Pompano Beach. The Broward County courthouse is at 201 SE 6th St in Fort Lauderdale. No matter which facility holds your person, the same basic steps apply, and our Fort Lauderdale bail bondsman serves all of them. If you are not sure where your person is, see our full list of Broward jails we cover or just call and we will figure it out together.
Bailing someone out of Broward County Main Jail comes down to six things: let booking finish, find the inmate and the bond amount, choose a bail bond, sign the paperwork, post the bond, and then keep every court date. You do not have to know all of this by heart. That is our job. We are local, we are licensed, and we post at the Main Jail 24/7. When you are ready, reach out to our Broward bail team or call (305) 783-7006 and we will start the moment you do.
A licensed agent answers 24/7, call any time, day or night.