Topic: Human Toll of Jail

Issue Brief

Data Analysis Human Toll of Jail Mental Health August 1, 2019

Mental Health: The Legislative Primer Series for Front End Justice

National Conference of State Legislatures

These reports are part of a series that explores policies that affect the front end of the criminal justice system. Each brief looks at who is entering the “front door” of the criminal justice system and gives examples of legislation, national initiatives, best practices, promising programs and key research on timely issues. The series provides legislatures with the tools they need to consider cost-effective policies that protect public safety. This report provides legislators with an overview of how to better address justice-involved individuals who have mental health needs. It highlights innovative laws and policies aimed at reducing criminal justice involvement, diverting appropriate defendants away from the criminal justice system altogether, and forging connections to treatment and services for individuals in an incarceration setting.

• 
• 
• 

Issue Brief

Data Analysis Human Toll of Jail Young Adults August 1, 2019

Young Adults in the Justice System: The Legislative Primer Series for Front-End Justice

National Conference of State Legislatures

These reports are part of a series that explores policies that affect the front end of the criminal justice system. Each brief looks at who is entering the “front door” of the criminal justice system and gives examples of legislation, national initiatives, best practices, promising programs and key research on timely issues. The series provides legislatures with the tools they need to consider cost-effective policies that protect public safety. This report examines young adults’ (age 18-24) overrepresentation in the criminal justice system. Emerging research is shedding light on the distinct developmental and behavioral health needs of this age group. The report looks at innovative justice-system responses used by jurisdictions to redirect the trajectory for justice-involved young adults. Legislators will find tools to assist them in identifying specific young adult needs in their jurisdictions and to advance informed policy responses effective in helping this age group.

• 
• 
• 

Issue Brief

Data Analysis Human Toll of Jail Pretrial and Bail April 23, 2019

Justice Denied: The Harmful and Lasting Effects of Pretrial Detention

Vera Institute of Justice

The pretrial population—the number of people who are detained while awaiting trial—increased 433 percent between 1970 and 2015. This growth is in large part due to the increased use of monetary bail. But pretrial detention has far-reaching negative consequences. This evidence brief presents information on the way that pretrial detention is currently used and summarizes research on its impacts. These studies call into question whether pretrial detention improves court appearance rates, suggests that people who are detained are more likely to be convicted and to receive harsher sentences, and indicate that even short periods of detention may make people more likely to become involved with the criminal justice system again in the future. The brief concludes by highlighting strategies that some jurisdictions have employed to reduce the use of monetary bail and increase pretrial release.

• 
• 
• 

Issue Brief

Human Toll of Jail Interagency Collaboration Presumption of Innocence January 31, 2019

A Call For New Criminal Justice Values

Arthur Rizer, R Street Institute

The U.S. criminal justice system expresses our nation’s values, for better or worse. For most of the early and middle 20th century, rehabilitation guided criminal justice policies, but in the 1970s and 1980s, notions of retribution, deterrence, and incapacitation emerged as replacements and signaled a dramatic shift in criminal justice policy. Now, as we enter an era of criminal justice reform, it is time for a new set of values. Parsimony in criminal punishment, which seeks the least coercive response, can undo the damage of overreaching incarceration. Parsimony in punishment serves the more fundamental values of liberty and limited government, which embody a distinctively American commitment to human freedom. While our history has clearly disappointed the values of parsimony, liberty, and limited government, the oncoming era of criminal justice reform opens the door to new and exciting possibilities.

• 
• 
• 

Implementation Guide

Human Toll of Jail Presumption of Innocence Pretrial and Bail October 12, 2018

Case Study: Supporting Individual Agency in the Pretrial Release Process

Urban Institute

This case study presents the experiences of two counties as they implemented communication strategies focused on engaging pretrial detainees in securing optimal pretrial release and successfully navigating the pretrial release period. Durham County sought to remind anyone released before trial about their court dates by signing them up for a user-friendly web-based service. The share of people who failed to appear in court dropped 6 percentage points from September 2017 to May 2018. Santa Clara County executed a multimedia campaign to inform detainees about nonmonetary release options and reduce overreliance on money bail. The number of non-monetary releases increased and monetary bail releases declined, although this could be due to other reforms. Durham and Santa Clara counties developed effective messages, sought the input of defendants and family members, and used multiple avenues to reach the intended audience.

• 
• 
•