Audrey Viars had a good night. She got to bed by 2 a.m. and didn't have to wake up until 7 a.m.
"You don't get a lot of sleep here," said Viars, owner of Audrey's Bail Bonds in Chehalis. "It's quiet right now. In another minute, we could have four to five things going."
As if on cue, the telephone rings. It's a collect call from the Lewis County Jail, which has expanded to right across the street from the former house where Viars does business.
"Hi, what are you doing in there?" said Viars while scribbling on a pad. "What's your bail? You're kidding me. What's the charge? That's a big bond. Oh, boy. What about grandma and grandpa? Give me a number out there."
Viars hangs up and explains that the person calling was supposed to meet an attorney at the courthouse to have a warrant quashed. The attorney didn't show up. The person calling was arrested and told he needed $100,000 in bail.
Viars got into the bail bonds field seven years ago, when she signed a bond to get a friend out of jail. The company through which she worked asked if she wanted a job. A surgery technician at the time, Viars was thinking about moving into a new field, but bail bonds was not it.
Still, she met the former head of the Washington State Bail Agents Association. They had a long conversation on the phone, and the woman said Viars would be good at it.
"I like people, and it's a service," said Viars. "You're listening to people's problems and what you can do for them."
She worked for another company for three years, and 3½ years ago decided to go into business for herself. Today, she can post a bond anywhere in the United States, though more than half of her business comes from Lewis County.
"I know who the people are," said Viars, who grew up in Morton and has lived in Chehalis for 26 years. "I can work with them a little more, maybe make up a payment plan. I have a lot of repeat clients, to where I get to know their families."
Bonds are a financial guarantee that a person will show up to court. The amount of the bond can vary greatly, from as little as $500 to $5,000 to $50,000, with 10 percent of the bond additional as her fee. Bonds require collateral, which could take the form of a vehicle title, credit cards or the deed to a house. Bond for both drug and rape charges tends to go high. Viars has issued a bond for $250,000.
"Those don't happen a lot," said Viars. "You are not going to write something like that if they don't have a house (as collateral). I tell people that if it's that serious, you might be better off to buy a good attorney and have them sit in jail."
It is rare that a person for whom she issues a bond doesn't show up in court. When it does happen, she calls up Bob Kimbler of Northwest Fugitive Recovery in Orting. Kimbler earns 10 percent or $100 (whichever is greater) for each bail jumper he brings in. It's not the job you see on TV or in the movies.
"Eighty to 85 percent of the job is on the phone," said Kimbler. "After that, typically, we'll go to the address listed. Then we'll go to the co-signer and see what kind of information they can offer us. A good part of our business is informants: on the street, from a state office, a bar."
Kimbler has 60 days to bring them to court, or else the bond is forfeited to the court. When he does find them, it's generally a peaceful process.
"Most of the time they're like, 'You found me, let's go,' " said Kimbler.
Not everyone goes peacefully, which is why Kimbler and his men have training in firearms, Tasers and mace. Once in a while, a bail jumper will pick a more unusual way to stay free.
"You go to pick up a guy, and there's a girl in the house," said Kimbler. "The guy has put on women's clothes and makeup."
It's not all poor people, or even people who are guilty of something. Kimbler has been in rich neighborhoods and has even arrested the children of a police chief (not in Lewis County). Viars has written bonds for mothers, fathers and children. Once a grandmother had eye surgery and missed her court date. Viars issued a bond for her.
Bail bond agencies make the justice system work more effectively, according to Holly Bishop, president of the Washington State Bail Bonds Agents Association. Bishop contrasts Washington with Oregon, one of the three states that does not have bail bondsmen.
"In Columbia County, Ore., they have over 35,000 arrest warrants," said Bishop. "People pay the state's 10 percent bond on bail and then don't show up. Here, bail bond pays the court. Our percentage of no-shows is less than 2 percent in the bail bonds industry."
There are more than 13,000 bail bond agencies in the U.S. said Bishop, with more than 50 percent of the agents being women.
With the expansion of the Lewis County Jail from 130 beds to 350, the future looks rosy for Viars.
"It's definitely going to make my business grow," said Viars. "They'll be picking up more misdemeanor warrants. I'm excited, that's basically what I do. I'm a babysitter for the court. We just keep track of people, make sure they show up."
Mark Lawton covers economic and energy issues for The Chronicle. He may be reached at 807-8231, or by e-mail at mlawton@chronline.com.
