The 8th Amendment of the United States Constitution protects the people from excessive bail. The word excessive is subjective, but we are pretty sure that the majority of the people would agree that the most expensive bails in U.S. history are excessive.
- Michael Milken- $250 million; racketeering and fraud on Wall Street in 1989.
- Kening Ma – $100 million; selling vehicles without proper safety certifications.
- Bernie Madoff – $10 million; $50 billion Ponzi scheme.
There are a handful of names that fit in between these bail amounts to complete the list of most expensive bails in U.S. history, but we will let you look for them if you are interested.
If you have a loved one in jail, and find that his or her bail is too excessive for you to pay alone, you are not out of luck. You can, and should, get a bail bond, which would cost only 10% of the full bail amount and can be paid off over a period of time.