HARRISBURG -- Rachel Manzo was released on her own recognizance yesterday, then returned an hour later to pay $10,000 -- all in $20s -- to bail her husband out of police custody.

They are among 12 current and former lawmakers and legislative aides charged in a scheme to use tax dollars to fund political campaigns.

The bail for Michael Manzo, who is thought to have orchestrated the plan, was the highest at $100,000 secured, which means he had to put up 10 percent of the money before he could be released.

"I've [represented] organized crime figures who didn't have to pay this much bail," his attorney, James J. Eisenhower, said while court personnel counted the bills, which Mrs. Manzo brought in 10 envelopes.

The only other suspect who had to post cash was former House Democratic Whip Michael Veon, whose bail was set at $50,000 secured.

Eleven of the accused surrendered to authorities yesterday and were taken for preliminary arraignment to Dauphin County District Judge Joseph Solomon. A 12th, Jeff Foreman, surrendered Thursday even as Attorney General Tom Corbett announced the charges.

All face charges of theft and conspiracy stemming from two grand jury presentments unveiled Thursday. They are accused of diverting millions of dollars in state resources, including more than $1 million in illegal pay bonuses to House employees who worked on political campaigns over a three-year period.

Additionally, state Rep. Sean Ramaley, D-Conway, is accused of working full time on his 2004 House campaign in Beaver County while drawing a taxpayer salary as a member of Mr. Veon's staff.

During preliminary arraignments, the defendants are asked if they understand the charges. They do not enter pleas.

In arguing for a lower bail for Mr. Veon, attorney Jeff Belardi told Judge Solomon that the case involved "no criminal violence and no direct or individual victims."

Deputy Attorney General James Reeder responded, "Our very democracy was the victim in this case."

Upon his release, Mr. Veon said he had no comment.

"Not today," said Mr. Veon, who represented Beaver County but now lives in Harrisburg. "Some other time, some other place."

The other suspects said nothing as they walked stonefaced through a swarm of reporters to enter and exit the stone courthouse on the east shore of the Susquehanna River.

Mr. Eisenhower spoke for his client, Mr. Manzo, who is accused of coordinating the bonus scheme and of hiring a woman he was having an affair with for a no-work job in Pittsburgh.

"Anyone who believes the allegations in the presentment were masterminded by Michael Manzo for his benefit is very naive," Mr. Eisenhower told reporters after the arraignment.

Mr. Ramaley's attorney, Philip Ignelzi, also spoke briefly with reporters about charges his client took a no-work job in Mr. Veon's office so he could collect a paycheck while he ran for office in 2006.

"He was hired on a part-time basis to do part-time work, and that's what he did. He's not the person who made the decision as to the parameters of this job, but rather Mr. Veon and the state," Mr. Ignelzi said. "He did very many things similar to other people that worked in those offices, constituent type services."

Mr. Ignelzi would not directly say whether his client would drop out of the race for the 47th District state Senate seat. He did say this much: "it's very unlikely that Mr. Ramaley will be given the chance to answer these charges in court and have a trial before the election, so we hope that voters would give him the same presumption of innocence that every defendant is afforded under the federal constitution and state constitution until he is given his day in court."

Most of the suspects surrendered at the Lower Paxton Township Police Department, where they were arrested, fingerprinted, handcuffed and escorted into separate cars driven by police who took them to the court house.

Five, though, surrendered at the court house. The first of them -- research analyst Patrick J. Lavelle and former personnel director Earl Mosley -- were quickly taken aside in the parking lot, frisked and handcuffed by police working for the attorney general, while their attorney cursed and yelled.

"This is ridiculous!" shouted their attorney, Matthew R. Gover, who characterized the public handcuffing as an unnecessary spectacle that should not have played out in front of news cameras.

Mr. Ignelzi also said the handcuffing of suspects in white-collar crimes is unusual and meant as a publicity stunt to raise Attorney General Tom Corbett's political profile.

Not so, Mr. Reeder said.

"It's common when people are arrested on felony warrants, and almost all of these charges were felony charges," he said.

Several area residents watched the spectacle outside the courthouse.

"It's disappointing what they did with tax money. It's my money, your money. I work for my money," said Ken Nichols, 67, a retired bookkeeper who lives near the courthouse.

William Ford, a cook who works in the area, said the lawmakers and staffers betrayed taxpayers and deserve jail time.

"They've probably been doing this a long time. This ain't nothing new; they just got caught," he said. "I'm glad they caught them."

Madelle Pierce, 46, agreed.

"It's a terrible crime and they deserve everything they get," she said.

Within the Capitol, reactions were more tempered.

"If the allegations of improper use of taxpayer money by former Rep. Veon and his associates prove to be true, then it is a reprehensible betrayal of the trust of the people of Pennsylvania," said Rep. Chelsa Wagner, D-Beechview.

"These individuals were empowered to spend taxpayer dollars for the good of their constituents and instead used them for political gain and to consolidate their own power."

Ms. Wagner's campaign was among those mentioned in Thursday's presentments as having received volunteers who were believed to have been working on state time. She said yesterday that she was unaware of any such arrangement and would never have accepted help under those terms.

Most of the suspects no longer work for the state. The four that had not already quit or been fired have been suspended indefinitely without pay or benefits, said Paul Parsells, spokesman for Democratic Whip Keith McCall.

Preliminary hearings were tentatively scheduled for Thursday.