Proposed Law To Limit Pre Trial Release Program Applauded By Bail Bondsmen

Florida's Senate bill 372 is being applaided by bail bondsmen throughout the state. While critics claim it is a push by politicians to favor the bail bonds industry.  A similar bill failed last year, but Senator Ellyn Bogdanoff's new bill would limit the availability of pre trial release programs in Florida to indigent defendants. 

 

Currently, Florida laws allows counties to reease people without posting bail if they participate in some ancillary activities such as mental health classes, alcohol/drug testing and drug treatment.  In addition, the defendants must often wear ankle bracelets that allow their location to be tracked by law enforcement. Critics of Senate bill 372 say the current program helps reduce prison populations, at a savings of $85 a day.

 

While on the surface, these are accurate facts, the pre trial release program does not occur in a vaccum. It isn't simply a matter of taking someone out of jail and saving money. What happens when the pre trial release program participant doesn't appear in court. Law enforcement must be tasked with retrieving them. Keep in mind, they have no financial obligation to the courts to appear. Just a promise. However, someone posts a bond or hires a bail bondsman, there is real money on the line. In addition, if they don't appear in court, the bail bondsman (or the bounty hunter they hired) tracks them down at their own expense. If they aren't returned within the specified amount of time, the court keeps the bond. In addition, courts are paid fees to process the bail or bonding of defendants. 

 

While critics of Senate Bill 372 call foul on limiting pre trial release programs, the cost benefit isn't as clear cut as they make it out to be. A bail bondsman serves a vital and integral role in the judicial process which shouldn't be undermined by politics.  

NPR Honored For Bail Bonds Coverage

The issue of pre trial release programs is one that seems to consistently be at the forefront of the bail bonds industry. The 2010 Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Silver Baton Award for excellence in broadcast journalism is being bestowed upon NPR news for their work on the controversial issue of bail bonds and pre trial release programs. NPR did a three part investigative journalism series which was critical of the cost and process involved in the bail bonds industry.

The NPR series looked at possible inequalities in the utilization of bail bonds, treatment of clients based on socio economic factors and unseen costs to American taxpayers.

Specfically, questions were raised if the overcrowding issues facing American jails would be different if the bail bonds process wasn't so profit driven. The piece noted that many defendants are incarcerated for numerous non violent crimes because they can not afford relatively small bail amounts. They put that cost at aprox. $9 billion annually.

They are quick to identify the bail bonds industry as an impediment to improving the overcrowding problem in our jails. Citing the bail bonds industry consistent opposition to pre trial release programs, the NPR series suggests a wider application of pre trial release programs, while unpopular with bail bondsmen, may be key to reducing taxpayers costs and overcrowding in jails.