Duane “Dog the Bounty Hunter” Chapman didn’t always get his man or woman, at least not in time to avoid having to forfeit thousands in dollars of bail money, according to state court records.
The state attorney general says Chapman’s company, Da Kine Bail Bonds Inc., and its insurer, Safety National Casualty Corp., owe at least $35,500 in bail that had been forfeited in 21 separate criminal cases because the defendants failed to show up for scheduled state court hearings. The money is owed to the state Judiciary.
The state filed papers Tuesday asking the court to consolidate the separate forfeitures into a single civil case.
The attorney general sent Chapman letters in 2013 and 2014 informing him that Da Kine owed $69,800 in bail from 45 separate cases that had been ordered forfeited since 2004. The separate bail amounts were for $100 to $11,000 and were for defendants charged with traffic violations and misdemeanor crimes including domestic abuse and assault. Some of the cases were later dismissed.
The state sent letters to Da Kine and Safety National Casualty earlier this year informing them that the outstanding bail forfeiture amount is $37,500. The Attorney General’s Office said Wednesday that Da Kine and Safety National owe $35,500 because it is reviewing the bail forfeiture of $2,000 from two separate cases.
The Attorney General’s Office says it and the state Judiciary have been reviewing other bail bond companies and that seven of them have paid approximately $700,000 in forfeited bail.
Chapman and his wife, Beth, operate Da Kine Bail Bonds. They said that for the past three years they have cooperated fully with the attorney general.
The Chapmans said in a statement Wednesday they have apprehended almost every one of the fugitives who jumped bail, making the forfeitures null and void. They said they have even helped the state retrieve millions of dollars in forfeitures from other bail bond companies across the state during the past 15 years at no cost to taxpayers.