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Thursday, July 05, 2018

Reforms intended to end excessive cash bail in Md. are keeping more in jail longer, report says

A rule intended to reduce the jail population and eliminate excessive cash bails for the poor in Maryland has actually resulted in more defendants being detained without the option of pretrial release, according to a recent report by groups advocating the end of mass incarceration.

The June 21 report, which analyzed pretrial jail populations in Prince George’s County before and after bail reform was implemented in 2017, suggests that while cash bails have decreased, judges have opted to hold more people without bond instead of releasing them on their own recognizance.

The increase in “no-bail” holds violates the spirit of rules that the Maryland Court of Appeals adopted to address concerns over racial and financial inequities in the cash-bail system, public defenders and advocates say.

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Publishers Notes: ECI is STILL under lock down. inmates are being fed cereal and bologna sandwiches. There is no A/C in the cells and many have not been able to take showers for some 5 days at a time. I don't care what anyone says, this is inhumane. Governors O'malley and Hogan have completely ignored ECI. 

7 comments:

Anonymous said...


Inmates everywhere are sentenced to confinement. It's not designed to be summer camp under direction of an Activities Director.

If the A/C is broken, it should be fixed. If the warden feels the safest, for inmates and staff, thing to do currently is to feed a limited menu in the cells versus letting larger groups congregate and cause trouble, worsened by reported understaffing, I respect their decision.

Anonymous said...

Do the crime, do the time.

Anonymous said...

1:38 I think its better stated that if you can't do the time, don't do the crime. Sammy Davis on Eye of the sparrow from Baretta.

Anonymous said...

The cellblocks don't have AC, just fans.

Anonymous said...

They are in prison, they committed a crime, why should they have any comforts of life. You had a choice and you made the wrong one, now deal with it!

Anonymous said...

You’re missing the point of setting bail. If the person charged doesn’t follow the rules of bail, it is confiscated and it becomes “income “ to the court..

Anonymous said...

The Justice Reinvestment Act is the biggest piece of garbage legislation ever passed in Maryland...the bail amount is a part if the new law...everyone hates it, especially the judges ...it ties their hands in many ways ...sentences , bail etc.