Pretrial Supervision Changes Intended to Increase Pretrial Release: Exploring the Effects on Pretrial Release and Compliance

• In Event: Issues in Pretrial Supervision

Abstract

Pretrial services agencies have existed in the criminal justice system for more than half a century. In the decades since, these agencies have proliferated nationwide. Despite their ubiquity, whether pretrial services agencies are effective at promoting pretrial compliance is somewhat unclear. In a recent review piece, scholars suggested that a less intensive approach may prove more effective at promoting community safety and court appearance. This is an especially important insight given recent moves to expand pretrial services as jurisdictions attempt to reduce their reliance on money bail. Whereas the expansion of pretrial services agencies has raised alarms given the potential for reductions in pretrial detention to be met by intensive forms of supervision (e.g., electronic monitoring), jurisdictions may modify their approach in ways that expand the opportunities for less intensive supervision and monitoring. In the current investigation, we evaluate the impact of changes to pretrial supervision implemented in a large-sized county in the southeastern U.S. Drawing on multiple sources of administrative data, we examine whether expanding supervision from one to four levels increased levels of pretrial release and, moreover, whether these changes were associated with increases in pretrial failure. We discuss the implications of our findings for policy and practice.

Authors

• Trey Cochenour, Florida State University

• Jennifer Copp, Florida State University