[Peace] [Announce] Bail Burden Keeps US Jails Stuffed With Inmates

Fri Jan 22 10:17:06 CST 2010

Yes, it seems to me that if the argument is that the jails are overcrowded and we need to build a new one, the counter argument could be why are people being jailed?  Are they nonviolent offenders who cannot come up with bail?  What are the financial costs?  In Lubbock, Texas, as the first story revealed, their County Board went the other way and spent millions on a new jail.  A cost-angle argument makes a strong case in my opinion combined with strong individual stories of how current policies are impacting individual and our community.

~Kimberlie

________________________________
From: Brian Dolinar <briandolinar at gmail.com>
To: Kimberlie Kranich <kakranich at yahoo.com>
Cc: William Brown <urbanabill at yahoo.com>; announce at communitycourtwatch.org; peace at lists.chambana.net; peoplespotluck at lists.chambana.net
Sent: Fri, January 22, 2010 9:04:40 AM
Subject: Re: [Announce] Bail Burden Keeps US Jails Stuffed With Inmates

I caught the second part of the series this morning and it was really very good.
While we don't have bail bondsmen preying on people here
we do have people sitting in the jail unnecessarily for a number of reasons if we look behind the bars.
We're following a guy's case who was being held on no bond under questionable charges, who just had it dropped from $25k to $3k, 
but is still waiting to hear back from a parole officer before being let out - it's a long story.

Common are cases in city court where people are held for city tickets they can't afford to pay and sit in the jail for weeks on end.
They get $20/day credit until they can pay off fines and costs.
I was following a guy who had thousands of dollars of traffic tickets he couldn't afford to pay.
We've seen people with tickets for public urination who end up spending time in the jail because they can't pay a ticket, rack up fines, etc.

This is going to be an issue in a couple years - as early as 2012 - when the Sheriff will be asking to tear down the downtown jail and build a new one.
The County Board just approved $200,000 for a new cooling system in the downtown jail - read today's NG.
The downtown jail is old and outdated, so says Sheriff Walsh.

With public pressure, the courts could be told to only lock up as many people as the satellite jail will hold.
But this will require setting free many of these individuals in the jail for lesser charges.
A FOIA to the Sheriff will tell us who is in jail for what.
Who wants to take this up?

BD

On Fri, Jan 22, 2010 at 8:46 AM, Kimberlie Kranich <kakranich at yahoo.com> wrote:

Thanks for the correction, William!
>
>Part two of this three-part series aired today on Morning Edition.
>
>For those who would like to listen to it or read the transcript, please visit:
>
>"Inmates Who Can't Make Bail Face Stark Options"
>
>http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=122725819
>
>
>
>~Kimberlie
>
>
>
>
________________________________
From: William Brown <urbanabill at yahoo.com>
>To: announce at communitycourtwatch.org; peace at lists.chambana.net; peoplespotluck at lists.chambana.net; kakranich at yahoo.com
>Sent: Fri, January 22, 2010 2:23:53 AM
>Subject: Re: [Announce] Bail Burden Keeps US Jails Stuffed With Inmates
>
>
>
>Quite an indictment of Lubbock, TX!  Illinois is one of 4 states that ban commercial bail bondsmen. It's less of a problem here in Champaign County - judges seem to use ROR a lot, and since only 10% of bail is required to bond out, many do.  But I think there are some things like DUI that require a mandatory, pretty high bail.  It would be good to explore the local statistics, if you can get them.  The sheriff should have stats on how many of the population have bail set.
>
>One clarification - "2/3 of the nations inmates" refers to local jail inmates only.  A little less than 1/3 of total US incarcerated population is in local jails. 
>
>Bill
>
>
>--- On Thu, 1/21/10, Kimberlie Kranich <kakranich at yahoo.com> wrote:
>
>> From: Kimberlie Kranich <kakranich at yahoo.com>
>> Subject: [Announce] Bail Burden Keeps US Jails Stuffed With Inmates
>> To: "Bob Illyes" <illyes at uiuc.edu>, announce at communitycourtwatch.org, peace at lists.chambana.net, peoplespotluck at lists.chambana.net
>>> Date: Thursday, January 21, 2010, 6:07 PM
>> Heard a
>> story this evening on All Things Considered on NPR on
>> WILL-AM 580 that was packed with information, statistics,
>> and humanness about how 2/3 of the nation's inmates are
>>> nonviolent offenders and the only reason they are
> in jail is
>> because they cannot pay their bail, sometimes as little as
>> $50.
>> 
>> Used to be that people were released on their own
>> recognizance.  When that was the case, people showed up
>>> for their court date.  Now, companies that provide bail
>> money make a lot of money, according to the report.
>> 
>> The story is 20 minutes long.  If interested, you can
>> listen to it or read it at the link below.
>>> 
>> http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=122725771
>> 
>> It is the first in a three-part report. Might be an angle
>>> to look at locally.
>> 
>> ~Kimberlie
>> 
>> 
>> 
>>      
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-- 
Brian Dolinar, Ph.D.
303 W. Locust St.
Urbana, IL 61801
briandolinar at gmail.com

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