Nebbia requirements are a headache, that's for sure. In a nutshell, a Nebbia requirement, also known as Nebbia Hold, is a court order that requires whomever is paying the bond for an accused person to source the bond funds prior to posting the bond. This means that if a bond is $100,000, and you are paying the 10% premium for your loved one in custody ($10,000), you have to provide financial records proving that the funds used to pay the bond premium did not come from illegal activity.
Nebbia requirements are most common in drug trafficking cases, although Judges may impose them in organized fraud and money laundering cases as well.
A Nebbia Hold will stand in the way of you being able to get your loved one out of jail unless you know how to quickly and properly satisfy the requirement. Simply showing a bank statement is not enough. You must be able to source the funds - that is, track the origin of the bond premium. Paystubs, months and months of financial history, affidavits. These are just a few of the things needed in order to put together a successful Nebbia packet.
Whether or not you have the funds to pay the bond premium is not the issue when a Nebbia Hold is in place. It's whether you can properly source the funds. If you have the money to pay the bond, it doesn't mean a thing without the proper documentation. Without a Nebbia packet that meets the legal requirements, your loved one will remain in jail indefinitely.
If you retain a criminal defense attorney who knows how to handle a Nebbia Hold, it is possible that your loved one will be released within 2-3 days. If the Nebbia packet is put together properly, the Prosecutor may stipulate to releasing the hold and your loved one can be out of custody even sooner.
Cases where Nebbia Holds are put in place are typically serious cases. Drug trafficking cases; cases involving money laundering allegations; fraud cases; and cases where large amounts of money are at issue.
If you have a loved one who is in custody with a Nebbia Hold in Miami-Dade County, Broward County, or Palm Beach County, contact me.