Building Trust and Protecting the Public

Mount Pleasant is a small town located in East Texas.  The town dates back to the early 1800s and has a history that reaches back to the days of the Caddo Indian Tribe.  The Caddos were known as builders of large burial mounds referred to as a "Pleasant Mount."  Early Anglo settlers appropriated the reference for a broad, oak and hickory covered hill in the area.  When the town on the hill was organized, the small village was named "Mount Pleasant.”  According to the 2010 census Mount Pleasant's population was 15,564. 

Anthony and Kellye Cooper are both proud Texas bail bondsmen.  Anthony has been in the business for 24 years and Kellye for eight.  The Coopers operate their bail business, AAA Bail Bonds, out of Mt. Pleasant and also service customers in Titus, Mt. Vernon and Red River.  Like most Texas agents, AAA is a local family-run agency.  The Coopers are strong supporters of the U.S. Military.  In addition to having a son in the marines, Kellye founded a non-profit organization titled M.O.M. You can find out more information about this great cause by CLICKING HERE.  M.O.M. stands for Ministering Our Military and is dedicated to serving our armed forces.  They provide care packages to military members all over the world who are deployed or stationed in the U.S. or overseas.  Additionally, they pray for the safety and well-being of our troops, bring community awareness to the sacrifices they are making and honor veterans for their military service.

A few months ago, the Coopers made headlines when they assisted law enforcement in the apprehension of a fugitive.  While this doesn’t seem like such a big deal, because bail agents apprehend fugitives all the time, it actually was.  This particular fugitive, Mario Briones, was not only one of Texas Crime Stoppers’ most wanted fugitives, but he was also identified as an extremely dangerous one.  On October 1, 2019, Pittsburg police posted wanted ads of Mr. Briones on the internet.  He was wanted for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and deadly conduct.

Anthony and Kellye Cooper were very familiar with Mr. Briones as they currently had him out on bond for an earlier charge.  Seeing that law enforcement was extremely anxious to find Mr. Briones and knowing that Mr. Briones had the potential for violence, especially towards law enforcement, Anthony decided to contact Mr. Briones’ family.  He informed them that law enforcement was looking for their son and it looked like things could have the potential for someone to get hurt.  Very quickly, Anthony was able to convince the family to talk with their son and get him to turn himself in.

The next day, Anthony drove to the police station with Mr. Briones in custody so that he could turn himself in peacefully.  Who knows what might have happened if the police had tried to apprehend Mr. Briones on their own? 

This valuable side of the bail industry is rarely discussed.  The relationships that bail agents have with the families of the defendants are extremely important.  These families, in most cases, have enormous influence over their members whether they are children or siblings.  This influence can taper down what can potentially be a dangerous situation as it did in this particular case.  When we talked with Anthony and Kellye about the importance of the family connection, they couldn’t overemphasize the value of it.  According to the Coopers, situations like these happen more often than you think.  They are contacted by law enforcement or by the family because someone they have out on bond has reoffended and needs to be brought in.  The bail agent then becomes a much-needed bridge between the fugitive and law enforcement to help safely and securely bring them back into custody.

We often talk about the value of the bail industry…our effectiveness, our accountability, our lack of cost to the county…all important things.  Very rarely do we talk about our relationships with law enforcement and the families of the fugitives.  It is those relationships that allow us to safely bring defendants back to court.  It is those relationships that allow us to potentially avoid unnecessary violence and dangerous situations.  It is those relationships that allow us to save lives.

We tip our hats to the Coopers and thank them for doing what they do.  The bail industry has a lot of work to do when it comes to educating the public about the bail process and our role in the criminal justice system, but with good stories like this, that job becomes a whole heck of a lot easier.