Another View: With money, you walk

Is the monetary bail system fair or does it further discriminate against low-income defendants who remain in jail before trial regardless of risk level, while higher income defendants afford bond and go free until trial?

For example, two people commit the same crime (misdemeanor or felony). One who has financial resources pays bail and walks free until trial. The low-income person, without financial resources, languishes in jail for an indefinite amount of time awaiting trial; added punishment for being poor.

Research validates that in Potter, Randall, and Lubbock counties if you cannot fork over cash bail you will be held in our overcrowded jails for weeks, months and sometimes years awaiting a trial. In Potter, Randall and Lubbock counties, the number of jailed individuals awaiting trial slightly exceeds 50% of total inmates, based on data from the first three months of 2023 furnished by the jails.

These percentages include those charged with both misdemeanor and felony offenses. Some argue that those alleged to have committed a felony should not be let out of jail. But remember, unless an extremely high bond has been set for a heinous crime, people charged with a misdemeanor or felony can be set free as long as they post monetary bail. Money to post bail allows the accused to avoid pretrial detention and avoid being held in jail and be able to continue on with life.

Personal Recognizance (PR) bonds, whereby the accused swears in writing to return for trial, could be used; however local judges are wary of this practice for fear the accused will not return for trial. This is ironic given the person who posts bail is free until trial on his/her “honor.” Studies indicate those released on PR bonds are as likely to return as those who post bond. For the small percentage who do not return for trial, a bench warrant is issued for their arrest. The simple PR bond option would significantly benefit low-income individuals and further uphold lawful rights of being presumed innocent until proven guilty, ensure due process, and eliminate expert’s conclusions of cruel and unusual punishment.

Discriminating against low-income defendants who cannot be released on a PR Bond also contributes to overcrowding at the Potter County jail. Potter County is now forced to "farm out” its inmates to other counties, and the Sheriff is suggesting yet another new jail may be needed. Should we as taxpayers pay for another jail and/or for farming out inmates when other, more constitutional options are available? It costs around $76 per day to house an inmate in the Potter County jail. If we take only 50% of their average jail population of 1,500 inmates, or 750 times $76 per day per inmate, times 30 days, we are talking about $1,710,000 per month!

The Appleseed Foundation, which serves as the administrative hub for the nonprofit Appleseed Network, a social justice network center in the US and Mexico, provides these factual findings:

• Longer pretrial detention makes it more likely low-risk defendants will lose their employment, lose their housing, and encounter family dislocation, thus increasing the likelihood of future criminal activity.
• Low-risk, low-income defendants remain in jail for no other reason than they cannot afford bail, and detaining these individuals actually makes it more likely they will reoffend in the future. Meanwhile, higher-risk individuals with higher incomes can buy their release through cash and surety bonds.
• Defendants detained pretrial have worse outcomes and receive lengthier sentences compared to otherwise identical defendants released on bond.
• Jailing low-risk defendants before trial has a negative impact on public safety, making it more likely they will commit a new crime in the short term and the long term.

Bringing this closer to home, a study in Wichita County, Texas, (Wichita Falls) by Texas A&M’s Public Policy Research Institute showed that poverty was the primary determining factor in whether a defendant bonded out — NOT the seriousness of the current charge or criminal history.

Texas’ Harris (Houston) and Travis (Austin) County jurisdictions have successfully moved away from money bail for misdemeanors without suffering decreased court appearances rates or pretrial rearrest rates.

Harris County bail reforms have not led to an increase in crime or recidivism rates (according to a recent federal report officially known as the O'Donnell consent decree) despite concerns about a rise in violent crime. The number of misdemeanor cases filed in Harris County declined from 62,000 per year in 2015 to 49,828 in 2021 — a drop of nearly 20%.

Travis County developed a list of exceptions to pre-trial release which any county looking at no cash bail could consider. I would offer that instead of continuing to violate the constitutional rights of the accused, having overcrowded jails and incurring costs of holding so many low-risk people in jail, shouldn’t Potter County appoint a committee to research the problem and develop legally acceptable policies?

A research-based, validated risk assessment tool would allow Potter, Randall, and Lubbock counties to assign each defendant a risk level and make informed decisions about bond amount, pretrial release and pretrial supervision based upon the assigned risk level. This risk assessment tool, used in combination with increased PR bonds, would not only increase public safety, but save millions of dollars that are currently spent on jailing lowrisk defendants.

Harris County complied with federal court orders to release misdemeanor defendants and Travis County followed suit by appointing a committee to study the issue and amend pre- trial detention. Our communities should do the same and I implore us to address, rather than dismiss this matter, particularly to level the playing field and eliminate financial disparities for the accused.

This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: Another View: With money, you walk