NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals has affirmed a Rutherford County trial court’s decision denying a refund to McAdoo Bonding Company after a $100,000 bond was forfeited.
The case stemmed from charges against Nathaniel Buchanan, who faced first-degree murder and firearm possession counts. Buchanan failed to appear in court multiple times after his release on bond, leading the trial court to order forfeiture. McAdoo Bonding argued for a refund after Buchanan was later apprehended, citing its efforts to help locate him.
The defendant failed to appear in court as scheduled after being released on a $100,000 bond secured by the bonding company. As a result, the company was required to forfeit the bond to the court. In essence, the $100,000 bond served as an insurance policy guaranteeing the defendant’s appearance. Although the man later turned himself in, Tennessee law gives trial courts only limited discretion under TCA § 40-11-204 to refund or reduce forfeitures—and such relief is rarely granted unless extraordinary efforts or circumstances are proven.
Although a bond may sound like an insurance policy on a defendant, it is not. A bail bond is a three-party agreement designed to guarantee that the defendant appears in court.
In May 2018, Nathaniel Buchanan was charged with first-degree murder and possession of a weapon during the commission of a felony. The trial court set his bond at $100,000 and required him to wear a GPS monitoring device. McAdoo Bonding Company issued the bond in July 2018, and it was filed with the court the following month. In April 2021, the court authorized removal of the GPS device. Later, on December 10, 2021, the State moved to revoke or increase Buchanan’s bond after he was arrested on new charges. His defense attorney also filed a motion to withdraw. At a hearing on January 13, 2022, Buchanan failed to appear. The court granted the State’s motion, issued a capias warrant, and ordered that Buchanan be held without bond. A “Forfeiture and Capias Order” was filed the next day. When McAdoo Bonding later requested a refund of the $100,000 bond, the courts denied the request.
The trial court rejected the request, emphasizing that McAdoo voluntarily assumed the risk and was granted multiple extensions before the forfeiture was finalized. The appeals court agreed, finding no abuse of discretion and ruling that ordinary efforts to locate a defendant after forfeiture do not entitle a bonding company to relief.
The decision underscores that bail bond forfeitures are treated as civil matters, and bonding companies bear responsibility when defendants fail to appear.
About Suspects Case: In October 2023, murder suspect Nathaniel Lamont Buchanan, who had failed to appear in court the previous year, was arrested by the U.S. Marshals Joint Fugitive Task Force with assistance from Rutherford County Sheriff’s deputies. Buchanan was originally charged with first-degree murder and weapons possession in 2018 but skipped a court hearing in January 2022, prompting a warrant for his arrest. While out on bond for the murder case, he had also been re-arrested in 2021 on drug and weapons charges.
After evading authorities for months, deputies, detectives, a K9 unit, and federal marshals tracked him to a residence on Megis Drive, where he was taken into custody on October 18, 2023.
Ultimately, Nathaniel Buchanan pleaded guilty to reckless homicide in a Rutherford County courtroom, with sentencing taking place last month (August 2025). Since he has been jailed since his 2023 arrest, he likely received credit for time served. If so, his four-year sentence will conclude in October 2027, according to Tennessee Department of Correction records.
