Topic: Bail

More Results

Specifically, judges are using supervised release for a broader range of cases than they used to.

The city has built collaborations with other agencies, which has allowed the city to facilitate jail releases in response to COVID-19 while keeping the community safe and protecting public health.

Remaining Challenges

New York City is focused on addressing its remaining challenges in its local justice system.

With changes to the state-wide bail reform law, there is no longer a need to focus on expanding the supervised release programs. The challenge will now be to encourage judges to consider release for the more serious charges, for which bail still remains a legal option, and to continue to build out support services within the program.

The city has also been working to identify where racial and ethnic disparities occur in the justice system and will be working to address the issue going forward.

Finally, the COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on every aspect of the city’s local justice system and continues to uniquely affect those incarcerated in local jails. The NYC jail population has seen a re-increase since the beginning of the pandemic, which requires a regular review of jail reduction approaches and their effectiveness.

The foundation of collaborative, data-driven strategies, including the necessary structures and collaboration from local stakeholders that are in place to support these strategies, has set the city up well to respond to the pandemic swiftly and effectively.

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Specifically, Cook County has been able to reduce the local jail population without putting public safety at risk. In fact, rigorous analysis completed by the Office of the Chief Judge, the JFA Institute, and Loyola University Chicago all demonstrate that eliminating cash bail in the justice system has been both safe and effective in Cook County.

In the first six months after bond reform was implemented in Cook County, more than 3,500 more people received an I-Bond—meaning that they were released without bail—who would not have received one before. Because of I-Bonds and lower D-Bond amounts, defendants saved a total $31.4 million that could instead go toward rent, food, and other essentials to support themselves and their families. In addition, 500 more people were safely released back into the community while awaiting trial.

Community voice was critical to these results. In 2020-2021, the county engaged 264 community residents who participated in 31 small group dialogues, an increase from the 144 community residents who participated in 24 small group dialogues in 2019.

Remaining Challenges

While Cook County has made significant progress in reducing its jail population, the county aims to reduce it even further, and continue addressing the barriers that keep people in jail before their trials begin.

In addition, the COVID-19 pandemic has created a set of completely new challenges for the Cook County justice system, but stakeholders remain firmly committed to driving forward toward the goals of the Safety and Justice Challenge. Through continued collaboration and data-driven decision making, stakeholders regularly review strategies to course-correct and adapt, even during the most challenging of circumstances.

Finally, Governor J.B Pritzker signed the SAFE-T act on February 2, 2021 which has significant implications for Illinois and Cook County. The abolishment of cash bail, law enforcement reforms, and other pretrial reforms are covered in the legislation and county stakeholders will have to collaboratively prepare for the impact of the significant changes.

More Results

There have been significant pretrial justice system improvements in the county. For example, first appearance courtrooms are now headed by a small number of trained judges, which allows for uniformity in how release and detain decisions are made. The county also established a bail policy leadership group that is staffed by an analyst and meets monthly to review outcome data.

In addition, the Criminal Justice Services (CJS) Pretrial Supervision Unit is poised to launch two specialized caseloads focused on clients who are at higher risk of pretrial failure. An assessment done by the Center for Court Innovation has provided the CJS Pretrial Supervision Unit with a set of recommendations concerning best practices around procedural justice. The Unit is working to incorporate those suggestions.

The development of the Community Engagement Task Group drew significant interest from both the local justice partners and the larger community, who are all committed to collaborating around the development of policy and practice changes in the justice system so that it is more fair, just, and equitable for all. Nearly 100 community members applied to participate in the Task Group, and 10 applicants were selected in March 2021.

By the end of Summer 2021, all county justice agencies will have implemented the Implicit Bias Training for Justice Professionals.

Remaining Challenges

Mecklenburg County is focused on addressing its remaining challenges in its local justice system.

An analysis of local criminal justice data by the W. Haywood Burns Institute identified bookings and early release decisions as the two decision points in the justice system most impacted by racial and ethnic disparities. The Community Engagement Task Group will plan to review the racial and ethnic disparities data analysis and provide feedback on policy and practice changes that will help to eliminate existing disparities in the local system.

The county is seeing an uptick in violent crime, including homicide, which has placed an emphasis on identifying dangerous individuals that are legally eligible for pretrial detention and detaining them, and appropriately supervising others while they await disposition of their case.

Last, the COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on every aspect of the county’s local justice system. The foundation of collaborative, data-driven strategies, including the necessary structures and collaboration from local stakeholders that are in place to support these strategies, has set the county up well to respond to the pandemic swiftly and effectively. The county is focused on sustaining the work underway as part of the Safety and Justice Challenge in order to continue to support the work of reducing the local jail population and eliminating racial and ethnic disparities.

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Through their strategies to reduce the jail population, the city successfully established a program to provide early bail review hearings within five days for people held in jail pretrial; increased early diversion opportunities through the Police-Assisted Diversion Program and other alternatives to detention; and reduced the average length of time people spend in jail awaiting trial or a violation of probation hearing.

Additionally, as part of the city’s efforts to eliminate racial and ethnic disparities in the jail population, Philadelphia established a racial and ethnic disparities workgroup to develop approaches to embed racial equity in their decarceration strategies and work towards a more equitable justice system. They also developed data tools and processes for investigating racial disparities at decision points across the criminal justice system; reviewed outcomes of key reform initiatives by race and ethnicity and suggested policy and practice changes to reduce disparities; and conducted collaborative implicit bias training across criminal justice partner agencies.

Additionally, establishing a Community Advisory Committee and developing partnerships with community-based advisors allowed the city to bring in additional perspectives that are critical to the success of making the local justice system fairer and more equitable.

The Safety and Justice Challenge has relationships with community groups who are engaged in conversations and decision-making related to reforming the local justice system. The Philadelphia partnership represents a collaborative effort between key stakeholders including: courts, police, corrections, public defenders, district attorneys, behavioral health, community members, and many others who support the city’s efforts to dismantle barriers to racial equity in the local justice system.

Remaining Challenges

Philadelphia is focused on addressing its remaining challenges in its local justice system.

While Philadelphia has made great strides at reducing the size of the local jail population, racial and ethnic disparities have worsened. Local criminal justice and community partners have shifted the reform efforts to center racial equity, while collaborating closely to protect the health and safety of the city.

Additionally, the COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on every aspect of the city’s local justice system and continues to uniquely affect those incarcerated in local jails. The foundation of collaborative, data-driven strategies, including the necessary structures and collaboration from local stakeholders that are in place to support these strategies, has set the city up well to respond to the pandemic. They are more focused than ever on supporting community-driven solutions and investing in services and supports for those impacted by the jail system.