Issue: Innovation Case Studies

Case studies prepared by the Urban Institute show how small-scale innovations in policy and practice are helping to reduce reliance on jail incarceration across the Safety and Justice Challenge Network.

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Implementation Guide

Data Analysis Interagency Collaboration Pretrial and Bail October 12, 2018

Case Study: Developing Data Dashboards to Drive Criminal Justice Decisions

Urban Institute

Jurisdictions across the country are seeking ways to better understand their justice-involved populations and guide their decisions with data. This case study examines the experiences of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania and the City and County of San Francisco, California in integrating real-time data across criminal justice decision points and other non-justice systems to inform decisionmaking.  With the increased interest in using dashboards across the country, practitioners interested in implementing similar efforts can take several lessons from Allegheny County and the City and County of San Francisco’s experiences, including the importance of collaboration and continuous communication throughout the process, building a strong analytic capacity and ongoing relationship with IT, and the importance of automated, real-time data.

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Data Analysis Interagency Collaboration Jail Populations April 12, 2016

Public Opinion Poll Findings on Jails and Local Justice Systems

RTI International and Zogby Analytics

A new nationwide poll on perceptions of jails and local criminal justice systems reveals that the majority of Americans believe the role of jails should not be to punish, and shows broad support for treatment and rehabilitation—particularly for people committing non-violent offenses and for those with serious mental illness. The poll was conducted by RTI International and Zogby Analytics, and supported by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.

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Data Analysis Jail Populations Pretrial and Bail May 4, 2015

Rational and Transparent Bail Decisionmaking

Pretrial Justice Institute

Money-based bail systems do not do the job they’re supposed to do—protecting the safety of the community while the defendant’s case is pending, and assuring the appearance of the defendant in court. Instead, the practice of using money to decide pretrial release has wasted taxpayer dollars and played a significant role in contributing to the mass incarceration. This white paper outlines the problems surrounding the current cash-based bail bond process and documents current successful models for moving toward a risk-based bail process.