The 2019 bail reform was grounded in evidence-based practices that have been proven to reduce unnecessary pretrial jailing and keep communities safe. The data shows that bail reform is advancing justice, saving lives and prioritizing public safety. In ninety-eight percent of cases, people released because of bail reform are not rearrested for violent felonies. Lawmakers must prioritize defending the reform against further amendments that would increase the statewide jail population and should instead focus on investing in resources like violence prevention, housing, and mental health and substance use treatment proven to make communities safe and strong.
The facts are clear: Bail reform has been resoundingly successful. As many as 183,000 New Yorkers have been spared the injustices of bail and pretrial jailing since passage and 98% of those released under bail reform have not been rearrested for a violent crime. But some lawmakers are proposing rollbacks that would dramatically increase pretrial incarceration and racial disparities and undo years of work towards ending the criminalization of poverty – all without advancing public safety.
Hear from real New Yorkers why bail reform must be protected.
Hear from FWD.us New York State Director for Criminal Justice Reform, Rodney Holcombe as he talks with PIX11 about bail reform successes in New York.
New York passed a historic package of pretrial reforms in 2019. Watch three New York families explain how money bail harmed their families and how they fought for change.