178.509 - Exoneration of surety before date of forfeiture: Conditions; grounds; issuance of order.
178.509 Exoneration of surety before date of forfeiture: Conditions; grounds; issuance of order.
1. If the defendant fails to appear when the defendant’s presence in court is lawfully required, the court shall not exonerate the surety before the date of forfeiture prescribed in NRS 178.508 unless:
(a) The defendant appears before the court and the court, upon hearing the matter, determines that the defendant has presented a satisfactory excuse or that the surety did not in any way cause or aid the absence of the defendant; or
(b) The surety submits an application for exoneration on the ground that the defendant is unable to appear because the defendant:
(1) Is dead;
(2) Is ill;
(3) Is insane;
(4) Is being detained by civil or military authorities; or
(5) Has been deported,
Ê and the court, upon hearing the matter, determines that one or more of the grounds described in this paragraph exist and that the surety did not in any way cause or aid the absence of the defendant.
2. If the requirements of subsection 1 are met, the court may exonerate the surety upon such terms as may be just.
3. If the court exonerates a surety pursuant to this section and there is any undertaking or money deposited instead of bail bond where the defendant has been charged with a gross misdemeanor or felony, the court shall:
(a) Prepare an order exonerating the surety; and
(b) Forward a copy of the order to the Office of Court Administrator.
(Added to NRS by 1971, 597; A 1979, 1400; 1991, 1015; 1999, 1846; 2007, 420)