Being related doesn’t automatically mean you owe someone your savings.

So, what would you do if your brother, whom you barely even know, called you from jail, insisting that you bail him out?

Would you hand over the money because he’s family? Or would you draw the line and save your money for your own priorities?

In the following story, one man finds himself in this exact situation and doesn’t want to help.

Here’s the story.

AITA for not paying for my brother’s bond?

4 months ago, my (27m) brother (31) went to jail. My dad called me, and I didn’t answer the phone because before that, he and I hadn’t spoken in 2 weeks, which is usual for us.

We can go months without speaking because he was in and out of my life as a child. My mom raised me with help from her family.

About 2 hours after he called me, I got a call from a jail. They said the person’s name, and I recognized it as my brother and didn’t answer.

He immediately called again, and I felt compelled to answer.

He was in jail and needed 2k to bond out. I said no and hung up.

I make a lot of money, so it wasn’t the amount; it was the fact that we don’t have a close relationship.

He thought the whole thing was done until he went to have lunch with his father.

Yes, we both have the same father (and I have two other older brothers from my father), but I didn’t even know my brother’s names until I was a teenager.

He randomly told me I had brothers when I was a child to begin with.

My brother didn’t call back, and neither did my dad, so I thought the situation was done.

Last weekend, my father invited me to lunch, so I went. Why not? My daughter was with me, and it’d been a while since they saw each other.

I wasn’t even there for 15 minutes before he started scolding me about not bonding my brother out.

Apparently, even his maternal aunt heard what happened.

I told him what I’m saying now; I don’t know his son that much. I saw him in person when I played football in high school, and he was playing for the opposite team. But we didn’t even speak there.

He told me it didn’t matter because he was still my blood relative. I said, “I’m not bailing strangers out of jail. The money I make is for things I see as important.”

Then I left because it was getting heated.

Last night, I was at my aunt’s house (my mother’s sister) and she told me that he told her about the situation and that he was hurt by it. I barely felt bad tbh, just mostly confused.

After talking with her, he can’t stop thinking about the situation.

Either way, she ended up echoing his words but with more context, saying “Your father’s absence wasn’t his fault. He’s still your brother and you should’ve helped him out.”

So now I’m second-guessing myself like… should I have bailed him out? I had the money. Still, my dad lives and is with the mother of his other sons.

He was even with her when my mom was pregnant, and he’s consistent in their life, so bailing his son out was his responsibility in my opinion. His other 2 sons, I haven’t even met.

I’ve been through stuff in life, as we all have, but my point is that none of his sons sought me out to comfort or help me.

He didn’t either. I don’t mind apologizing if I’m the one who’s wrong.

AITA?

Yikes! It’s easy to see both sides of this, but it’s not his responsibility to help anyone out of jail.

Let’s see how the folks over at Reddit feel about what he did.

As this reader explains, they don’t even have a relationship.

According to this comment, they could’ve been “family,” but they’re not.

Here’s someone who thinks his dad and brother are losers.

This reader thinks the others should be covering his bond.

He’s not obligated to help at all, even if they were a closer family. His brother broke the law and got caught. Not him.

If you liked this post, check out this story about an employee who got revenge on a co-worker who kept grading their work suspiciously low.