The bond shall be exonerated by operation of law in a case where the defendant has been arrested on new charges in the same jurisdiction and the defendant has been subsequently released on his or her own recognizance. True or False?

• A. True
• B. False
• C. Not specified
• D. Both true and false

Answer: (A)

Exoneration by operation of law occurs when the bond obligation ends automatically due to a qualifying event, without the surety taking action. In this scenario, the defendant being arrested on new charges in the same jurisdiction and then released on their own recognizance signals that the court no longer needs the original bond to secure appearance for the initial case. The release on recognizance under the new charges effectively terminates the bond obligation for the original offense, so the bond is exonerated by operation of law. This explains why the statement is true. The bond’s termination is independent of the outcome of the new charges and merely reflects that the original bond is no longer needed under these circumstances.