{"id":33953,"date":"2022-07-19T21:28:49","date_gmt":"2022-07-19T21:28:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/?p=33953"},"modified":"2022-07-19T21:28:49","modified_gmt":"2022-07-19T21:28:49","slug":"cash-bail-and-how-its-become-limited-in-the-36th-district-court","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cjstudents.com\/index.php\/2022\/07\/19\/cash-bail-and-how-its-become-limited-in-the-36th-district-court\/","title":{"rendered":"Cash bail and how it’s become limited in the 36th District Court"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\n Detroit Today<\/a> <\/span><\/p>\n

Cash bail now has a longstanding tradition<\/a> in America\u2019s judicial system. But it\u2019s been removed or reformed in several states and localities. The Washtenaw County has removed it<\/a> entirely from their practices.<\/p>\n

Now, Michigan\u2019s 36th<\/sup> District Court decided to limit cash bail<\/a>. The decision comes as an agreement after the American Civil Liberties (ACLU) of Michigan and another law firm filed a class action lawsuit against the 36th District Court<\/a> for attempting to end cash bail, as they said it discriminates against the poorest defendants who are unable to pay bond.<\/p>\n

At the time of the 2019 lawsuit, the ACLU claimed that over 60 percent of Wayne County pretrial detainees were there because they couldn\u2019t pay bond. But why has cash bail been a part of America\u2019s judicial system, and why did it become limited in Michigan\u2019s 36th<\/sup> District Court?<\/p>\n

Judge William McConico of the 36th<\/sup> District Court says too many people are \u201cbeing punished for being poor<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\u201cWhen it comes to traffic and misdemeanors, 99 percent of those people will not have cash bail.\u201d \u2014 Judge William McConico, 36th<\/sup> District Court.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n

Listen: How we got money bail and why Michigan\u2019s 36th<\/sup> District Court agreed to limit its use.<\/p>\n

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\nhttps:\/\/wdet.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/DT-CASH-BAIL-07-19-2022.mp3<\/a><\/audio><\/p>\n\n

GUEST<\/strong><\/p>\n

Insha Rahman<\/a><\/strong> is the vice president of advocacy and partnerships at the Vera Institute, a national research nonprofit pushing to reform the criminal justice system. She says bail changed in America due to the advent of the bail bond industry, which often restricted freedom for pretrial detainees.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat changed in this country was the advent, the start, of the bail bond industry,\u201d says Rahman.<\/p>\n

Judge William McConico<\/a><\/strong> is the chief judge for the 36th<\/sup> District Court. He says that cash bail will be restricted to much fewer cases in his district court.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen it comes to traffic and misdemeanors, 99% of those cases will not have a cash bail,\u201d says McConico. \u201cWhen it comes to a felony case, the majority of those cases, cash bail will be eliminated also, unless there\u2019s a finding by the magistrate or the judge that the defendant poses a risk to the community or is a great flight risk.\u201d<\/p>\n

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