I don’t know any poor folks that have had a $250 million dollar bail. Bail for first time offenders ranges from $500-$2500. It is just collateral, you don’t actually pay it if that wasn’t clear. If you can’t temporarily post bond there are 100s of companies out there that will post for you for a small fee (fractions of your actual bond). Is it perfectly fair? No, but I don’t think it is a terrible system either.

Generally for first time offenders that are not a threat to society and unlikely to skip court, bail is waived altogether.