Position paper
I agree that although New York’s States Bail Reform Bill will significantly reduce pretrial incarceration levels, some serious concerns have not been addressed in this reform. The new bail law will do away with cash bail and pretrial detention in about 90 percent of the arrests made while the judges will maintain the option of setting cash bail in the remaining cases. This will guarantee
To start with, the New York bail reform law states that for cases involving non-violent and misdemeanors felonies, cash bail will no longer be an option. Judges will not consider releasing those charged with minor crimes on cash bail but rather on their recognizance or with release orders developed to make sure that the individual will come to court, such as text reminders for court dates or pretrial supervision. On the other hand, cases of those charged with violent felonies will still have a judge’s option to set bail. Although this might reduce the number of arrests made, it does not guarantee the reduction of crime rates. In New York, the judges are not allowed to deny bail due to concerns that the charged persons might pose a threat to the community if released. This not only makes the most dangerous people walk around but also goes against the criminal justice system, which aims at ensuring that the community is free of criminals.
While the reform makes it clear that the number of cash bails will have to reduce, it does not offer alternative means to provide funding for its implementation. As cash bails reduce, the number of pretrial supervision is likely to increase. This will require training of officers about the new rules in the reforms as well as increasing the number of pretrial officers and purchasing technological devices to send reminder texts for court dates. I agree with the reforms’ aim to reduce disparity effect on people of color and the poor in New York. However, if the reform does not come up with ways to provide for funding to the court system, the implementation of the reforms might fail to serve its purpose.
Designing and implementing an effective criminal justice system is crucial for every state. The process, however, requires cautious judgments and analysis as well as available resources. Looking at the previous bail system, defendants who could not afford to post bail remained in jail while those who could afford were always released regardless of the magnitude of their crimes. This system was flawed in that people who did not pose any threat to the community were held in jails while most people who were a risk to the community were let to post bail and walk freely. A reform to offer the bail option to only defendants who do not pose a threat to the community would significantly reduce crime rates in the state.