Bail for domestic violence charges in California starts with a county bail schedule, and a judge cannot depart from it quietly.
In San Bernardino County, scheduled bail is $25,000 for misdemeanor domestic battery and $50,000 for felony corporal injury on a spouse or cohabitant. Under California Penal Code § 1270.1, a court cannot raise bail, lower it, or grant release on your own recognizance in a domestic violence case until a hearing is held in open court.
That hearing is the real opening, and it is usually decided on preparation. My Rights Law defends people arrested for domestic violence in Rancho Cucamonga and across San Bernardino County.
Call 909-330-3880 to talk with our team.
Get help immediately for your Domestic Violence case.
The bail decision happens fast, often before anyone has read the police report closely. Our job is to get in front of it.
California Penal Code § 1270.1 tells the judge what to consider. We build the record on each point:
Our attorneys handle these hearings in San Bernardino County courts regularly. Reach us at 909-330-3880.
The county publishes a uniform schedule that sets a presumptive amount for each charge. The current version took effect January 1, 2026.
According to the San Bernardino County felony and misdemeanor bail schedule, the presumptive amounts are:
Scheduled bail is the starting point, not the final amount. Several factors add to it under the same schedule:
The schedule itself states that every bailable offense is subject to an individualized determination by a magistrate. Pre-arraignment amounts do not bind the judge at arraignment. Once both sides have counsel, the court has the full range of options, which cuts in both directions.
Most charges allow a defendant to post scheduled bail at the jail and walk out. Domestic violence charges carry an added procedural layer.
California Penal Code § 1270.1 requires a hearing in open court before bail is set above or below the schedule, and before any release on a defendant's own recognizance, when the arrest involves:
The requirement reaches both misdemeanor and felony versions of these charges.
The prosecution is entitled to notice before the hearing so it can appear and oppose any deviation. The protected person may also be given an opportunity to address the court. Showing up unprepared to that hearing is how people end up back in custody after posting bail.
There is one exception. Under California Penal Code § 1269c, an officer may submit a sworn declaration asking a magistrate to set bail above the scheduled amount, and no hearing is required for that increase.
In San Bernardino County, the officer has eight hours from booking to obtain magistrate approval. If that approval does not arrive in time, the scheduled amount applies.
Several statutes and one controlling case decide what the judge can and cannot do.
Under California Penal Code § 1275, a judge setting, reducing, or denying bail must consider protection of the public, the seriousness of the charge, your prior record, and the probability that you will appear. The statute names public safety as the primary consideration. In domestic violence cases, that language does most of the work.
The California Supreme Court held in In re Humphrey that conditioning release solely on whether a person can afford bail is unconstitutional. Courts must consider your actual ability to pay and whether less restrictive conditions would protect safety and secure your appearance.
Detention is permitted only on an individualized finding, and where safety is the concern, only on clear and convincing evidence that no less restrictive alternative works.
California Penal Code § 825 requires that a person in custody be taken before a magistrate within 48 hours of arrest, excluding Sundays and holidays. A weekend arrest can therefore mean a longer wait than the number suggests. The bail hearing required under Penal Code § 1270.1 is held within that same window.
Each county's superior court adopts its own uniform schedule under Penal Code § 1269b. That is why bail on the same charge differs between San Bernardino, Riverside, and Los Angeles counties. The schedule that governs a Rancho Cucamonga arrest is the San Bernardino County schedule, regardless of where you live.
If law enforcement has reasonable cause to believe bail money came from criminal activity, an officer may seek a hold under California Penal Code § 1275.1. Once a magistrate approves it, release requires a noticed hearing. The officer has 24 hours from booking to obtain that approval under the county schedule.
The sequence rarely gets explained at the jail. Here is the order events typically follow in San Bernardino County:
Release almost never means going home to the same address. Orders attach at multiple stages, and each one carries separate criminal exposure if it is broken.
An officer responding to a domestic violence call may ask an on-call judicial officer for an emergency protective order at any hour. It takes effect immediately. Under Family Code 6256, it expires at the close of business on the fifth court day after issuance or the seventh calendar day, whichever comes first.
California Penal Code § 136.2 allows a court with jurisdiction over a criminal matter to issue a protective order on a good cause belief that harm or intimidation has occurred or is likely.
In domestic violence cases, the court must also consider ordering you not to own or possess a firearm and to relinquish any firearms you have. Possessing a firearm in violation of that order is separately chargeable under California Penal Code § 29825.
When a judge grants release without money bail, or alongside a reduced amount, the conditions often include:
Don’t face Domestic Violence charges alone
California Penal Code § 273.5 requires willful infliction of injury resulting in a traumatic condition on an intimate partner. It is a wobbler, meaning prosecutors may file it as a misdemeanor or a felony. The felony filing carries the highest scheduled bail among common domestic violence charges in the county.
Domestic battery under California Penal Code § 243(e)(1) covers any willful and unlawful use of force against a spouse, cohabitant, former partner, or the other parent of your child. No visible injury is required. It is charged as a misdemeanor, and it still triggers the open-court hearing requirement before any deviation from scheduled bail.
This charge applies when a restrained person knowingly violates a protective order. It frequently follows an initial arrest rather than starting one. A violation involving threats, violence, or going to the protected person's home or workplace also triggers the hearing requirement under California Penal Code § 1270.1.
Stalking under California Penal Code § 646.9 involves repeated following or harassment combined with a credible threat against the other person's safety. It carries the highest scheduled bail of any domestic violence-related charge in San Bernardino County, at $150,000 for a felony filing. A qualifying prior conviction doubles that amount.
Yes, but only through a noticed hearing in open court. The court weighs the California Penal Code § 1275 factors alongside your ability to pay and whether less restrictive conditions would work. Preparation matters more here than in an ordinary bail motion.
It is possible. The county schedule permits judges to set zero bail, and In re Humphrey requires courts to consider non-financial alternatives. Domestic violence charges make it harder, because the same hearing requirement applies before any release on your own recognizance.
No. The prosecuting agency decides whether to file and whether to dismiss, not the protected person. A request to drop the matter may become relevant evidence, but it does not end the case or automatically change the bail posture.
The court can revoke release and take you back into custody, and a new charge under California Penal Code § 273.6 may be filed. Contact through a third party counts. So does contact initiated by the protected person.
The hearing is often the first and best chance to affect custody status, and the prosecution will be there. Without counsel present, the court hears only one version of the facts and one account of your ties to the community.
Speak with experienced defense attorneys ready to fight your Domestic Violence charges.
Bail for domestic violence charges in California is decided on a short clock and a thin record, and the hearing usually happens before most people have spoken to an attorney. My Rights Law defends clients facing domestic violence charges in Rancho Cucamonga and throughout San Bernardino County. Our attorneys can request the evidence, prepare the bail motion, and argue the statutory factors in open court.
Call our law firm at 909-330-3880 for a free case evaluation with attorney Bobby Shamuilian and our defense team.
This page was written by the My Rights Law Editorial Team and reviewed for legal accuracy by Bobby Shamuilian.
Attorney Shamuilian is the founder and managing partner of My Rights Law and is widely recognized as a legal authority, frequently appearing as a legal analyst and TV pundit on national news outlets.
He has earned a perfect “10.0 – Top Attorney” rating on AVVO and a “10.0” rating on Justia, and has been named among the “Top 40 Under 40” and the “Top 100 Trial Lawyers” by The National Trial Lawyers.
With his proven expertise and dedication, Mr. Shamuilian is committed to protecting your rights and achieving the best possible outcome for your case.
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