Innocent Until Proven Guilty? The Racial and Economic Inequalities of a Monetary Bail Pretrial Detention System

• In Event: Roundtable: Courts and Convictions

Abstract

The practice of connecting pretrial release from incarceration to financial ability not only unfairly affects the poor, but also has a disparate impact on racial minorities. Estimates show that the rate of racial minorities being detained in jail is nearly five times higher than whites. Although these practices affect minorities and the poor disproportionally, the practices have deleterious affects across the board. With the era of mass incarceration putting the United States far ahead of other countries in the number of its residents behind bars, the need for bail reform has become increasingly urgent. Current policies and practices around monetary bail are among the primary reasons for growth in our jail populations. On any given day, 60 percent of the U.S. jail population is composed of people who are not convicted but are being held in detention as they await the resolution of their charge. Further, monetary bail systems do not further the expressed purpose of ensuring defendants return to court, nor do they protect society. Yet, this issue is one of the least studied aspects of the mass incarceration movement. This paper discusses methods for correcting the inequities of the monetary pretrial bail system and for implementing reform alternatives.

Author

• Wendy R. Calaway, University of Cincinnati