New rules and rights introduced in Illinois’ 2021 Pretrial Fairness Act are being “systematically” ignored and overruled across the Chicago area by Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart, according to a policy document shared by the Intercept.
Browsing: Pretrial Release
New Mexico researchers discovered that stricter rules on pretrial detention would have left more innocent people detained without any measurable increase in public safety.
In an unprecedented move for a member of the Supreme Court, Mexico Chief Justice Arturo Zaldívar visited the Santa Martha Acatitla women’s prison after receiving a letter signed by over 600 inmates, pleading for help since they’ve never been convicted of a crime.
Far from a tool of justice, granting defendants credit for time served perpetuates “criminal justice pathologies,” argues University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School Prof. Kimberly Kessler Ferzan.
Since Los Angeles enacted the zero-dollar bail policy in June of 2020, court appearance rates and rearrest rates have remained steady or dropped — proving that individuals can be released pretrial and not return to criminality.
Holding most individuals accused of an offense in jail for any length of time before trial may not guarantee the safeguards that many people assume detention provides, according to a new study released by Arnold Ventures.
What if we considered the safety of people facing charges, as well as the community as a whole, in devising a more equitable way of treating people awaiting trial? With bail reform attracting heated criticism, two researchers offer a blueprint for a smarter approach to pretrial justice.
Over 30 states lack laws that establish a firm deadline for initial appearances, requiring only that such appearances occur “within a reasonable time,” with the result that individuals can be held behind bars for weeks before seeing an attorney, according to a Southern Methodist University study.
For the first time, New York City has a complete picture of its pretrial population, thanks to the latest data visualization and database tool created by the city’s Criminal Justice Agency and Luminosity, Inc. The Pretrial Release Dashboard brings in “key facts” that many say have been missing from the bail reform debate.
The pretrial process in U.S. courts often sets up defendants to fail. The results of a Philadelphia pilot project suggest that hiring paraprofessionals to furnish defenders with more individualized information about clients could make a big difference, according to an Indiana Law Journal paper.