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posted by martyb on Monday September 03 2018, @09:52PM   Printer-friendly
from the Rich-and-poor-treated-the-same dept.

California Governor Jerry Brown has signed Senate Bill 10, the California Money Bail Reform Act, eliminating cash bail in the state:

An overhaul of the state's bail system has been in the works for years, and became an inevitability earlier this year when a California appellate court declared the state's cash bail system unconstitutional. The new law goes into effect in October 2019. "Today, California reforms its bail system so that rich and poor alike are treated fairly," Brown said in a statement, moments after signing the California Money Bail Reform Act.

The governor has waited nearly four decades to revamp the state's cash bail system. In his 1979 State of the State Address, Brown argued the existing process was biased, favoring the wealthy who can afford to pay for their freedom, and penalizing the poor, who often are forced to remain in custody.

[...] Under the California law those arrested and charged with a crime won't be putting up money or borrowing it from a bail bond agent to obtain their release. Instead, local courts will decide who to keep in custody and whom to release while they await trial. Those decisions will be based on an algorithm created by the courts in each jurisdiction.

Bail agents disapprove.

See also: California's 'cautionary tale' for others considering no cash bail system
California's bail bond empire strikes back


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  • (Score: 2) by Whoever on Monday September 03 2018, @11:39PM (3 children)

    by Whoever (4524) on Monday September 03 2018, @11:39PM (#730036) Journal

    And I don't know why you are determined to misrepresent the situation, but the change in law provides specific rules on who should be denied parole and who should be held. It's not just up to the judge.

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  • (Score: 2, Insightful) by khallow on Tuesday September 04 2018, @12:09AM

    by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday September 04 2018, @12:09AM (#730040) Journal

    It's not just up to the judge.

    My view is that condition will fall apart when it hits the courts. Mandatory sentencing only worked against poor clients, for example. I suspect this will end up being more of the same.

  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday September 04 2018, @12:16AM

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday September 04 2018, @12:16AM (#730044)

    I'm not (mis)representing the situation at all, just clarifying the arguments being advanced so they can be supported or opposed on their merits, rather than on repeated misunderstandings.
    Thexalon seemed to be repeatedly missing khallow's implicit point, and khallow kept failing to make it explicit, so I restated it as clearly as I could.

  • (Score: 2) by AthanasiusKircher on Tuesday September 04 2018, @02:11AM

    by AthanasiusKircher (5291) on Tuesday September 04 2018, @02:11AM (#730074) Journal

    That's not actually true -- or at least not true depending on what you mean by "specific." Yes, minor crimes (misdemeanors) generally get released, while very severe crimes don't, but it seems there's a pretty significant "gray area" in the middle to be resolved by algorithms and courts.

    Possibilities for abuse are definitely still there (note my other post below about the ACLU changing its mind and opposing this bill for that reason).