Figuerola

PER CURIAM Opinion: Dissent by Judge BRUNETTI.

The sureties on defendant Alfonso Figue-rola’s bail bond appeal the grant of the government’s motion for judgment on default. We reverse and remand for further proceedings.

I.

Figuerola was indicted and arrested for money laundering. A magistrate judge set bail at $150,000 in the form of a fully secured bond. Shortly thereafter, the United States Attorney and Figuerola’s lawyer stipulated to a $150,000 bond secured by the signatures of Figuerola’s wife of four months, her sister, and four of her friends, and by the home of two of these friends. 1 The magistrate judge approved the stipulation without comment, although she had previously rejected similar provisions as inadequate. The six sureties signed forfeiture agreements pledging to pay the total of $150,000 severally as well as jointly; the two who had agreed to do so deposited with the district court a deed of trust conveying their home to the government.

Figuerola abided by the conditions of his release for about four months until confronted by an agent with information that he had been charged previously with a drug offense under an alias. Figuerola disappeared the same day…

dissenting:

I respectfully dissent. The majority opinion stretches to give some of the facts in the record more significance than they have under our law. The district court made no *505 clear error in determining on the facts before it that the sureties had not presented any evidence suggesting that they did not understand the terms of the bail bond when they agreed to act as sureties. The district court did not abuse its discretion in declining to give the sureties a third chance to substantiate their opposition to forfeiture of the bond.

The sureties needed to establish that they never assented to the written terms of the bail bond to avoid being bound by its obligations. The sureties needed to show that they did not understand that they pledged $150,000 in consideration for Figuerola’s release subject to the conditions of his bail agreement. We should accept the district court’s factual determinations about whether the sureties assented to the bond’s conditions unless the findings are clearly erroneous. See Ah Moo v. A.G. Becker Paribas, Inc., 857 F.2d 615, 621 (9th Cir.1988).

The sureties raised no relevant or credible evidence to suggest that they did not understand their…