Bail Reform Helps Countless People. Why Don’t We Hear More of Their Stories? Personal narratives can help the public understand the benefits of bail reform, but telling these success stories presents its own share of challenges. Bryce Covert
The Successes and Shortcomings of Larry Krasner’s Trailblazing First Term Philadelphia’s top prosecutor has made good on promises to reduce incarceration in the city. His re-election bid will be a litmus test for the progressive prosecutor movement he helped start. Joshua Vaughn
Virtually No One is Dangerous Enough to Justify Jail A common sense cost-benefit analysis of pretrial detention. Sandra Mayson, Megan Stevenson
Philadelphia Jails Have Black Mold, Rats, Poor Heating, Say Women Held There The Philadelphia Community Bail Fund, which recorded and published the complaints, paid for the release of some incarcerated women on Saturday. Joshua Vaughn
Newly Elected Los Angeles DA Will End Cash Bail in Nation’s Largest Prosecutor Office On his first day in office, George Gascón said prosecutors will not seek bail starting Jan. 1, a win for criminal justice reformers. Eliyahu Kamisher
America’s Biggest City Was Hit Hard By COVID-19. Its Jails Are Filling Up Again New York City’s jail population is close to reaching pre-pandemic levels. Advocates say dishonest fearmongering about bail reform—and the politicians who capitulated to it—have created a very real safety crisis. Joshua Manson
New York Watchdogs Lack Data to Track Judges’ Compliance With Bail Reform Although the new law took effect in January, state data showing how courts are applying it won’t be available until July 2021. And without funding, courts in small towns and villages may never collect the data. Steven Yoder
As COVID-19 Permeates Prisons And Jails, Baltimore Defendants Continue To Be Held Without Bail An Appeal analysis shows that the percentage of people held without bond remains steady, at roughly 33%, although arrests are down during the pandemic. Jerry Iannelli
New Orleans Judge Steered People to Wear Ankle Monitors From Company Run by Campaign Donors, Lawsuit Says Judge Paul Bonin improperly required people who appeared in his courtroom to purchase ankle monitors from a private company run by one of his former law partners, a lawsuit says. Ko Bragg
Judges Must Also Be Centered In Demands To Defund And Divest From Mass Criminalization Calls to defund the police must also be accompanied with divesting power and discretion from judges. Gina Clayton-Johnson
His Immune System Is Compromised and He Spent Two Months in Jail Unable to Afford Bail A man describes his ordeal in medical isolation while awaiting trial. Eliyahu Kamisher
Massachusetts Prosecutors Should Use Their Power To Dismiss Cases Now District attorneys in the state could decarcerate quickly by dropping unnecessary cases. Will Isenberg
New York Retreats on Bail Reform Amid Coronavirus Outbreak The state, which accounts for roughly one-third of all positive COVID-19 cases in the country, is facing a rapid spread of the disease in its jail and prison systems. Bryce Covert
Despite Risk of Spreading Virus, Judges Continue to Impose Cash Bail in Pennsylvania In Northampton County, advocates say the practice is putting the people charged for minor offenses, and the broader community, in danger. Joshua Vaughn
Protesters Rally in Albany to Oppose Bail Reform Rollback Advocates, formerly incarcerated people, and lawmakers warned against overhauling the New York law before it has a chance to prove itself. Bryce Covert
Major County Jails Are Decarcerating, But Violence, Deaths Persist Jails in New Orleans and Cleveland have had significant population drops, yet conditions of confinement remain poor. Communities harmed by these jails should experiment with new accountability measures to maintain political pressure against jail administrators. Jonathan Ben-Menachem
Queens County D.A. Reiterates Commitment to Ending Cash Bail After Critics Say She Reneged Melinda Katz, who was inaugurated Monday, is facing criticism over what some say is a broken campaign promise. Aaron Morrison
Massachusetts Prosecutors Are Using ‘Dangerousness’ Holds To Keep People Incarcerated Pretrial Advocates say that despite the election of several progressive prosecutors in the state, there’s a substantial increase in such detentions, which are stymieing gains made through policies to limit cash bail. Joshua Vaughn
Bail Isn’t Supposed to Be a Punishment. Why Does the Media Keep Acting Like it Is? How high or low bond is isn’t a measure of how severe the state considers a crime. Adam H. Johnson
Sanders And Warren Just Released the Most Decarceral Criminal Justice Platforms Ever The 2020 presidential candidates recently unveiled national criminal justice agendas that reimagine public safety and punishment. Aaron Morrison
In One Arizona County, Pay For Your Ankle Monitor Or Go To Jail A lawsuit is challenging Mohave County’s practice of charging certain people for mandatory GPS monitoring before trial. Kira Lerner
In Queens D.A. Race, Criminal Justice Reform Is The Real Winner Establishment candidate Melinda Katz declared a narrow victory in the New York City borough’s district attorney primary, but progressive Tiffany Cabán pushed the race to the left on issues like marijuana and sex work. Aaron Morrison
Media Frame: Chicago ‘Bean’ Graffiti Outrage Prioritizes Property Over People Outlets ran over 200 articles covering the vandalism. The outsize attention will likely damage young lives. Adam H. Johnson
Progressive Philly D.A. Larry Krasner’s Bail Reform Plans Seem Stalled, Advocates Say Krasner’s office acknowledges ‘there’s room to move forward and do more.’ Bryce Covert
Arizona Man Faces Deportation After Filing Lawsuit Against Coconino County Sheriff Jose Montelongo-Morales challenged the jail’s immigration detainer policy. He and some of his family members were arrested months later. Lauren Gill
Suicides, ICE Cooperation, and Racism Allegations at Maryland Jail Harford County Sheriff Jeffrey Gahler’s office, which partners with immigration enforcement, faces jail deaths and a discrimination claim from a Legal Aid attorney. Lauren Gill
In Pennsylvania, Detention as a First Option Heavy reliance on pretrial incarceration in Berks County subjects people to poor medical care and unsanitary and unsafe conditions. Joshua Vaughn
Pleading Guilty to Get Out of Jail The criminalization of poverty in Franklin County, Pennsylvania, has led to a staggering increase in incarcerated people, all at a huge cost for defendants and taxpayers alike. Joshua Vaughn
Video Hearings: The Choice ‘Between Efficiency and Rights’ Many jurisdictions across the country use video instead of holding bail hearings in person, a practice that often leads to dire consequences. Bryce Covert
New Data Reveals the Racial Disparities in Pennsylvania’s Money Bail Industry Despite accounting for less than 12 percent of the state’s adult population, roughly 40 percent of all bail bonds were issued in cases involving a Black defendant. Joshua Vaughn
Atlanta Bail Reform Is Leaving Behind Homeless and Mentally Ill People A number of people spent multiple days at the Atlanta City Detention Center for low-level offenses, including for driving while using a cell phone and for walking in the roadway. Aaron Morrison
A White Woman Was Caught On Tape Selling Heroin, But Police Arrested A Black Woman Instead In a case of mistaken identity, Jada Noone was arrested by Pennsylvania State Police, spent 15 days in jail and faced a felony drug case before charges were dismissed. She’s now suing over her false arrest. Joshua Vaughn
I Worked As a Bail Bond Agent. Here’s What I Learned. Low-income women are fueling bail industry profits—and getting harmed in the process. Joshua Page
New York City Looks To Eliminate Hidden Bail Fees As they await statewide action to eliminate cash bail, city councilmembers are looking for ways to reduce the financial burden on families of incarcerated people. Bryce Covert
‘I am a Human and I Just Ask to Be Treated as One’ A lawsuit challenging cash bail in St. Louis could help close a notorious jail. Kira Lerner
Bail Activist Jailed For Trying To Help When Cops Confronted Man In Mental Health Crisis Colorado-based attorney and bail activist Elisabeth Epps was just released after serving a short jail stint related to a 2015 encounter with Aurora Police. The experience gave her a new understanding of the experiences of the people she has bailed out. Aaron Morrison
Justice in America Episode 12: The Criminalization of Poverty Josie and Clint talk with Sara Totonchi, the Executive Director of the Southern Center for Human Rights. Josie Duffy Rice, Clint Smith
Moving Away From ‘Jail for Everybody’ Harris County Judge Darrell Jordan discusses his newly elected colleagues’ decision to withdraw an appeal of a landmark bail reform lawsuit. Roxanna Asgarian
The ‘Failure to Appear’ Fallacy Prosecutors denounce bail reform efforts when people miss court dates, but ‘failure to appear’ rates obscure the fact that many who miss court aren’t on the run. Puck Lo, Ethan Corey
Despite New Rules, NYC Is Still Jailing People Long After They Post Bail A new Bronx Freedom Fund report documents these extended pretrial lockups, which threaten people’s jobs and destabilize families. George Joseph
Harris County Judges May Face a Reckoning Over Bail On Election Day Republican misdemeanor judges in Houston have clung to an unconstitutional bail system. But their intransigence could cost them their seats. Maura Ewing
Cash Bail Yields A New Casualty A Texas jail suicide involving a woman who couldn’t make bail in a shoplifting case highlights of the plight of pretrial detainees with mental illness. Lauren Gill
One Year After Cook County’s Bail Reform, Court Watchers Say Things Are Getting Worse Judges are still setting bail at unaffordable levels, and more people are being held without bond. Bryce Covert
California could soon end money bail, but at what cost? The passage of Senate Bill 10 would decimate the bail industry, but many advocates say it falls short of true reform. Max Rivlin-Nadler
Harris County D.A. Ran as a Reformer. So Why is She Pushing High Bail for Minor Offenses? An email obtained by The Appeal shows Kim Ogg’s office is intentionally asking for unaffordable bail amounts to hold certain people in jail in Texas. Alex Hannaford
Philadelphia Courts are Running a Financial Scheme That Profits Off The Poor And padding city and state coffers with millions of dollars. Maura Ewing
Failure-to-Comply Arrests Reveal Flaws in Sex Offender Registries In one Pennsylvania county, more than three times as many people on the registry were charged in 2016 with failing to follow registry requirements than were charged with a new sexual offense Joshua Vaughn
The Appeal Podcast Episode 9: The History––and Promise––of the Bail Abolition Movement With journalist Bryce Covert. Adam H. Johnson
Justice in America Episode 1: Justice for the Rich, Money Bail Introducing a new podcast from The Appeal, featuring Josie Duffy Rice and Clint Smith III. Josie Duffy Rice, Clint Smith
Trump’s ‘Zero Tolerance’ Immigration Policy Has an Antidote New bail funds aren’t just getting immigrants out of detention—they’re helping them stay in the country permanently. Max Rivlin-Nadler
Prosecutors and Judges in Pennsylvania County Hammer Defendants in Low-Level Drug Cases In overdose-wracked Franklin County, Pennsylvania, a small-time dealer is denied bail, while the number of drug induced homicide cases has skyrocketed. Joshua Vaughn
The Only Winners In California’s Fines and Fees System Are Private Debt Collectors San Francisco just became the first city in the nation to stop charging court fines and fees, but the rest of the state has a long way to go. Teresa Mathew
Lawyer for Pedro Hernandez Says Bronx DA’s Office Is Still Withholding Key Evidence Max Rivlin-Nadler
Ditching the Bondsman is Only Part of the Battle for Bail Reform The five states that have done away with commercial bond outlets still struggle with inequity when it comes to cash bail. Rebecca McCray
Cryptocurrency is the Next Frontier in the Quest to Abolish Cash Bail A new app seeks to liberate people from more than “liberal malaise.” Rebecca McCray
New Data Throws Fuel on the Fire for Nashville Bail Reform The majority of people who face misdemeanor charges remain behind bars just because they are poor Larry Hannan
New Study Supports Larry Krasner’s Pledge to End Cash Bail in Philly The City Controller’s report calls on the DA’s office to “dismantle the current cash bail system” Larry Hannan
