Senators push measure to aid those forced to pay cash bails
Two U.S. senators introduced a bill Thursday aimed at reducing the use of cash bail to hold people behind bars ahead of their trials, a practice the senators said runs contrary to the U.S. justice system’s “promise” to treat people equally before the law.
The bipartisan measure, introduced by Sens. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., and Rand Paul, R-Ky., would create a $10 million grant for state or local governments to replace or reform systems that require money for bail.
The senators said the practice disproportionately impacts the poor and communities of color and lets high-risk criminals walk free ahead of trial if they have the financial means.
“Americans should be able to expect fair and equal treatment under the law regardless of how much money is in their pockets or how many connections they have,” Paul said in a statement Thursday.
“By giving states greater freedom to undertake reforms specific to their needs, our legislation will help strengthen protections for minority and lowincome defendants, reduce waste and move our bail system toward more effective methods, such as individualized, risk-based assessments,” he said.
The bill’s introduction follows legislative and court-mandated efforts across the country to move away from a money bail system. An Illinois judge ruled this week that Cook County should release individuals awaiting trial for felonies and misdemeanors who cannot afford bail if the defendants are not considered dangerous.
The California and Texas state senate bodies passed measures this year aimed at curbing money bail, though the bills did not make it through either states’ other legislative chamber.
Harris County, meanwhile, has become a focal point in the debate after a federal judge ruled that its cash bail system unconstitutionally was holding people accused of low-level crimes behind bars because of their poverty.
Chief U.S. District Court Judge Lee Rosenthal directed the county in April to release misdemeanor defendants who do not have federal detainers, other holds or pending mental health competency hearings after 24 hours if they swear they cannot come up with money for bail.
According to county estimates, more than 2,000 people have been released under Rosenthal’s order.
In June, the U.S. Supreme Court nixed an emergency county appeal to block the order, which has been met with outcry from local officials who say the blanket release of nearly all misdemeanor defendants could threaten public safety. They advocate a system that bases pretrial proceedings and bail on a risk assessment that, in part, takes into account an individual’s criminal history and potential to re-offend.
High- or low- risk individuals who can pay money bail, however, are routinely released from jail ahead of their trial.
The county is appealing Rosenthal’s order.
The bill by Harris and Paul states that research shows that detaining individuals ahead of trial increases the likelihood they will re-offend.
County officials, despite mounting a costly legal battle against the federal civil rights lawsuit in court, have attempted to reform the bail system they acknowledge to be problematic.
The county has beefed up its pretrial services department and instituted a pilot program to provide public defenders at bail hearings.
First Assistant Harris County Attorney Robert Soard said the county will implement a new “public safety assessment” July 29 that will base recommendations of bail and pretrial proceedings, in part, on risk to the community, while it will not eliminate money bail. The county originally had planned to put that into effect July 1.
Soard said the senators’ bill “is generally consistent with Harris County’s efforts in bail reform.”
Precinct 1 Commissioner Rodney Ellis, who has been vocal in his support of ending cash bail for indigent defendants, applauded the Harris-Paul bill.
“It’s time to end our two-tiered bail system that favors the privileged and punishes the poor,” Ellis said. “I hope Congress approves this bill, which could provide incentives to Texas and other states to enact overdue reforms.”