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This morning i started reading about bail justice. I was aware Kamala Harris & Rand Paul -- a name pairing that really gets my attention -- had introduced legislation, and was aware of SONG's (Southerners On New Ground) work in May. So when Song sent this call, i went to read up on the bill -- and found even more information about bail justice.
The "report" generated from my citation tool Zotero, is below, and you can skim the notes or follow the links for more.
Readings:
Across the Southeast, we intend to initiate Free From Fear campaigns to end the practice of cash bail. We see bail outs as an ongoing tactic to build a base, to expose the crisis of cash bail and the beast that is the criminal-legal system, to change hearts and minds, to make real and material impacts on the lives of our people, and to build power. We can think of no better way to commemorate the history of Black August than to bail out as many Black women, broadly defined, and Black trans people free across the South as we can.
The "report" generated from my citation tool Zotero, is below, and you can skim the notes or follow the links for more.
Readings:
A Labor of Love: Black Mama's Bail Out Action + Reflection
Type Web Page Author ignitekindred URL http://southernersonnewground.org/2017/05/a-labor-of-love/ Date 2017-05-16T14:50:04-04:00 Accessed 7/23/2017, 8:23:13 AM Abstract [CLICK HERE FOR SPANISH TRANSLATION] 1. Putting our organizing practice into action. At SONG, our organizing practice has long been based in love, longing, and desire across class, race, gender and community. This action allowed us to demonstrate our collective belief in a shared destiny with the dreams, demands and hopes of Black women in all of our varieties at the center. Our collective cup overflowed locally and regionally with gift cards, bouquets, clothes, services offered by local practitioners, prime ... Website Title Southerners On New Ground Short Title A Labor of Love Date Added 7/23/2017, 8:23:13 AM Modified 7/23/2017, 8:23:13 AM Tags:
Defendants Can’t Be Jailed Solely Because of Inability to Post Bail, Judge Says
Type Newspaper Article Author Richard A. Oppel Jr URL https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/17/us/chicago-bail-reform.html Publication The New York Times ISSN 0362-4331 Date 2017-07-17 Section U.S. Accessed 7/23/2017, 8:23:29 AM Library Catalog www.nytimes.com Language en-US Abstract An order issued by Chief Judge Timothy C. Evans of Cook County, Ill., highlights a contentious national debate surrounding the ability of defendants to post bail. Date Added 7/23/2017, 8:23:29 AM Modified 7/23/2017, 8:23:29 AM Tags:
Notes:
- In April [2017], for example, a federal judge in Houston ruled that Harris County could not keep those arrested on misdemeanor charges in jail because they could not afford bail. The judge, Lee H. Rosenthal, who was appointed by the first President Bush, found that the system disproportionately affected indigent residents and violated “equal protection rights against wealth-based discrimination.”
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- In April [2017], for example, a federal judge in Houston ruled that Harris County could not keep those arrested on misdemeanor charges in jail because they could not afford bail. The judge, Lee H. Rosenthal, who was appointed by the first President Bush, found that the system disproportionately affected indigent residents and violated “equal protection rights against wealth-based discrimination.”
Getting Rid of Bail Is Only the Start
Type Newspaper Article Author Ginia Bellafante URL https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/01/nyregion/getting-rid-of-bail-is-only-the-start.html Publication The New York Times ISSN 0362-4331 Date 2017-06-01 Section N.Y. / Region Accessed 7/23/2017, 8:23:19 AM Library Catalog www.nytimes.com Language en-US Abstract Using conflict resolution and social services to keep low-level offenders out of the courts should be the next wave in criminal justice reform. Date Added 7/23/2017, 8:23:19 AM Modified 7/23/2017, 8:23:19 AM Tags:
Opinion | Kamala Harris and Rand Paul: To Shrink Jails, Let’s Reform Bail
Type Newspaper Article Author Kamala D. Harris Author Rand Paul URL https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/20/opinion/kamala-harris-and-rand-paul-lets-reform-bail.html Publication The New York Times ISSN 0362-4331 Date 2017-07-20 Section Opinion Accessed 7/23/2017, 8:23:52 AM Library Catalog www.nytimes.com Language en-US Abstract Low-risk defendants shouldn’t be detained before trial just because they can’t afford it. Short Title Opinion | Kamala Harris and Rand Paul Date Added 7/23/2017, 8:23:52 AM Modified 7/23/2017, 8:46:32 AM Tags:
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Pretrial Justice Institute
Type Web Page URL http://www.pretrial.org/ Accessed 7/23/2017, 8:27:47 AM Abstract The ProblemThe American system of bail is fundamentally incapable of doing the job we expect from it. Those with money—regardless of where they got the money or their danger to the community or victims—can purchase their freedom while poor defendants … Continue reading → Website Title Pretrial Justice Institute Date Added 7/23/2017, 8:27:47 AM Modified 7/23/2017, 8:46:10 AM Tags:
Related
Selling Off Our Freedom: How Insurance Corporations Have Taken Over Our Bail System
Type Web Page URL https://www.aclu.org/report/selling-our-freedom-how-insurance-corporations-have-taken-over-our-bail-system Accessed 7/23/2017, 8:45:16 AM Abstract Selling Off Our Freedom: How Insurance Corporations Have Taken Over Our Bail System is a joint report by Color of Change and the American Civil Liberties Union’s Campaign for Smart Justice that documents how the for-profit bail industry fuels mass incarceration and perpetuates racial inequalities. Website Title American Civil Liberties Union Short Title Selling Off Our Freedom Date Added 7/23/2017, 8:45:16 AM Modified 7/23/2017, 8:45:16 AM Tags:
Related
Type Statute Name of Act S. 1593: A bill to provide grants to States and Indian tribes to reform their criminal justice system to encourage the replacement of the use of payment of secured money bail as a condition of pretrial release in criminal cases, and for other purposes. Short Title Pretrial Integrity and Safety Act Date Added 7/23/2017, 8:36:42 AM Modified 7/23/2017, 8:37:42 AM Tags:
Notes:
- From NYT editorial, re Pretrial Integrity and Safety Act
...Excessive bail disproportionately harms people from low-income communities and communities of color. The Supreme Court ruled in Bearden v. Georgia in 1983 that the Constitution prohibits “punishing a person for his poverty,” but that’s exactly what this system does. Nine out of 10 defendants who are detained cannot afford to post bail, which can exceed $20,000 even for minor crimes like stealing $105 in clothing....
...black and Latino men respectively pay 35 percent and 19 percent higher bail than white men....
This isn’t just unjust. It also wastes taxpayer dollars. People awaiting trial account for 95 percent of the growth in the jail population from 2000 to 2014, and it costs roughly $38 million every day to imprison these largely nonviolent defendants. That adds up to $14 billion a year.
Bail is supposed to ensure that the accused appear at trial and don’t commit other offenses in the meantime. But research has shown that low-risk defendants who are detained more than 24 hours and then released are actually less likely to show up in court than those who are detained less than a day.
...
Kentucky and New Jersey, for instance, have shifted from bail toward personalized risk assessments that analyze factors such as criminal history and substance abuse. These are better indicators of whether a defendant is a flight risk or a threat to the public and ought to be held without bail.
Colorado and West Virginia have improved pretrial services and supervision, such as using telephone reminders so fewer defendants miss court dates and end up detained.
These nudges work. Over the second half of 2006, automated phone call reminders in Multnomah County in Oregon, resulted in 750 people showing up in court who otherwise may have forgotten their date.
...
The Pretrial Justice Institute, an organization that works to change unfair and unjust pretrial practices, estimates that bail reform could save American taxpayers roughly $78 billion a year. More important, it would help restore Americans’ faith in our justice system.
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Related
- From NYT editorial, re Pretrial Integrity and Safety Act
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