California may not require bail for most criminal suspects
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California could dramatically change the way it pressures criminal defendants to show up for court, doing away with monetary bail for most and taking income into account for others to ensure poor suspects get an equal shot at freedom.
Instead of requiring suspects to post bail, county officials would decide whether to release them based on their risk to public safety and would use jail alternatives like home detention or monitoring bracelets that track their locations.
When a judge decides monetary bail is needed for suspects accused of serious or violent crimes, the amount would be based on defendants’ incomes instead of on a pre-determined bail schedule that varies in each of California’s 58 counties.
“It fundamentally transforms a broken cash bail system that punishes poor people for being poor,” said Assemblyman Rob Bonta, D-Oakland.