Senate Gives First Ok To "Moneyball" Or "Minority Report" Bail Bill

The Maryland Senate is now just a vote away from approving a plan to rework the bail system and depend more on data, in what the bill's sponsor calls a "moneyball" approach.

The Senate advanced the bill Friday, rejecting amendments that would have delayed or derailed it.

The bill is expected to get a final vote in the Senate on Monday night.

The bill is a response to a Court of Appeals decision, requiring the state to provide a public defender at every bail hearing for indigent defendants. Sen. Brian Frosh, D-Montgomery, the sponsor of the data-based plan, says the state could avoid this requirement at the earliest bail stage by replacing the first hearing with an automated system that uses criminal history data.

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