Bail Reform News Archive

  • How New York Judges are Getting Around Bail Reform

    New York Focus

    When New York's bail reform took effect in January, it meant people wouldn't be behind bars because they couldn't afford their freedom. Some judges are skirting the intent of that law by setting alternative forms of bail, like partially secured bonds (PSB), at significantly higher rates. Our Krystal Rodriguez explains the intent behind PSBs.

  • New York City's Pretrial Jail Population Grows After Rollbacks on Reform

    The Hill

    The pretrial jail population in New York City has increased by nearly 16 percent since July, when the state amended a previously passed bail reform measure, reports the Hill. The article cites our study, which predicted the same percentage increase and found that under the amended law, 84 percent of total cases remain ineligible for bail.

  • Violent Crime Linked to Bail Reform? NYPD Says Yes, Experts Say No

    Gothamist

    Michael Rempel, director of jail reform at the Center, say it is far too early to draw any hard conclusions on how the new laws have affected New York, given that the policy has been in effect less than a year, and that COVID-19 has created "a series of confusing dynamics" within the criminal justice system that make it even tougher to study.

  • Bail Reform in New York: What Happens Next?

    The Crime Report

    Krystal Rodriguez, co-author of our study, Bail Reform Revisited, presented in a webinar series with the Center on Media, Crime and Justice at John Jay College of Criminal Justice to explore the impact of the 2019 bail reform bill and its 2020 amendments on the culture of pretrial incarceration during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic in New York.

  • Blaming Violent Crime on Bail Reform

    Gothamist

    New York's bail reform "probably increases public safety, by avoiding the harmful effects that create recidivism." Citing our director of jail reform, Mike Rempel, Gothamist examines the campaign to link bail reform to violent crime.

  • Spock vs Kirk: The Battle Over NY Bail Reform

    The Crime Report

    Comparing it to the eternal debate between Spock and Captain Kirk on Star Trek, our director Greg Berman
    writes about the public debate around New York’s bail reform law and how—and when—to judge the success of this new law. 

  • New York Bail Reform's Effect on Crime

    City & State New York

    In an article looking at crime rates in New York City in the immediate aftermath of New York State's bail reform, our director of jail reform, Michael Rempel, points to the potentially crime-producing effects of pretrial detention itself, arguing that, in the long run, such detention can make the public less, not more, safe.

  • Supervised Release Program Expands as an Alternative to Jail, Bail, or Release

    City and State New York

    The scope of New York City’s supervised release program has broadened under the recently enacted bail reform law in New York. “We’ve been in a major hiring push in order to engage the kinds of social workers that we need to deal with this,” said Greg Berman, the outgoing head of the Center for Court Innovation, which runs supervised release programs in the Bronx, Brooklyn and Staten Island.