ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — After years of political debate about the issue, Maryland’s highest court approved changes to the state’s pretrial system on Tuesday to prevent people from being held in jail simply because they can’t afford bail.
The Court of Appeals’ seven judges unanimously approved the changes, which will be effective July 1. The changes mark the latest development in a growing push nationwide to keep cash bail alone from incarcerating the poor. They were approved after the court heard hours of testimony last month on revisions proposed by the state judiciary’s Standing Committee on Rules and Practice and Procedure.
“You need to look at what the defendant’s situation is, what his or her risks really are and attempt to fashion an ability to release on the least onerous conditions possible,” said Alan Wilner, a retired Court of Appeals judge who now serves as chairman of the committee.
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3 comments:
To the residents of Maryland, living your life normally just got more dangerous.
The purpose of bail or a bail bond, was to ensure the defendant appeared for trial, not to discriminate against those who were less wealthy than others. Maryland, in the continuing effort to become the most liberal in the country, has just made it easy for a defendant to disregard their court date and to make the job of law enforcement much more difficult.
Most judges in Maryland can compete with the most liberal judges in California. They get paid no matter what their decisions are. The defendants who are "languishing" in jail are now free to go and do more harm, while their victims have no closure.
Just what we need, more criminals back on the street
One of the most sacred principles in the American criminal justice system, holding that a defendant is innocent until proven guilty. In other words, the prosecution must prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, each essential element of the crime charged.
A line in our Constitution says , "No excessive Bail".
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