A Mission Viejo bail bondsman pled guilty to 14 felonies after prosecutors determined he had hired Orange County Jail inmates to negotiate and sell bail bonds on his behalf.

Kenneth Hendrick, 50, has been sentenced to three years probation and will be required to serve one year in the Orange County jail.  The California Department of Insurance has also revoked his bail license meaning Hendrick will never be able to negotiate, transact or sell bail bonds again.

Authorities say the defendant commissioned nearly one dozen Orange County jail inmates to help him drum up business between March and December 2010.  Those men would notify Hendrick when new arrestees were booked into the system and would point them in his direction in order to arrange a bond.   The California Department of Insurance strictly  prohibits unlicensed persons from negotiating bail.  Licensed agents who pay commissions to unlicensed individuals are subject to criminal prosecution, fines, and revocation of their license.

Hendrick reportedly pled to two felony counts pertaining to recommending an attorney to a client, multiple felony count of having a business arrangement with an incarcerated inmate and another felony count relating to soliciting an unlicensed person to help him gain clients.

Prosecutors say this is not the first time an individual from James Morris bail bonds, the agency where Hendrick was employed, was convicted of these types of charges.  Owner James Morris is currently serving a six-month sentence after being sentenced on a similar, but separate case last year.