Abolishment of Cash Bail

Law enforcement officials sound alarms on eve of cash bail abolishment (1/1/20, A-20).

While history demonstrates that most defendants released without bail will return to court and will not engage in violence while at liberty, it was a mistake to not legislatively empower judges to consider the risk of harm to the public posed by some released arrestees. While that determination may be subjective, it can be appropriately informed and delimited by objective tests including the nature of the crime, the strength of the evidence, the existence of documented threats and the defendant's mental state and criminal history. 

While the new law, which takes effect today, made some reasonable accommodations to public safety, by excluding serious crimes and those involving violence, that is merely a temporary solution. A permanent fix should provide for a rational way to assess and prevent the risk of  release to public safety and insure speedier trials so that accused persons do not languish in jail for lack of financial means.