Pretrial Integrity and Safety Act of 2017
This bill amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to require the Department of Justice's Office of Justice Programs to make grants: (1) to replace bail systems that use payment of money as a condition of pretrial release in criminal cases, and (2) to implement a National Pretrial Reporting Program to collect data on the processing of defendants by state and local courts.
[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4019 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
115th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 4019
To provide grants to States and Indian tribes to reform their criminal
justice system to encourage the replacement of the use of payment of
secured money bail as a condition of pretrial release in criminal
cases, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
October 11, 2017
Mr. Ted Lieu of California (for himself, Mr. Curbelo of Florida, Mrs.
Love, and Ms. Jackson Lee) introduced the following bill; which was
referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide grants to States and Indian tribes to reform their criminal
justice system to encourage the replacement of the use of payment of
secured money bail as a condition of pretrial release in criminal
cases, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Pretrial Integrity and Safety Act of
2017''.
SEC. 2. PURPOSE AND FINDINGS.
(a) Purpose.--The purpose of this Act is to provide grants to
States and Indian tribes to reform their criminal justice system to
encourage the replacement of the use of payment of money bail as a
condition of pretrial release in criminal cases.
(b) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
(1) The money bail system has proven to be an ineffective
method of protecting public safety. Research shows that under
money bail systems, nearly 50 percent of defendants who were
determined to be high-risk were allowed to return to the
community with little or no effective oversight simply because
they could afford to pay the amount set for money bail.
(2) Other studies have shown that for low-risk individuals,
pretrial detention for even short periods makes it more likely
the individuals will commit new crimes following release. Low-
risk defendants held for as little as 3 days are 40 percent
more likely to commit a crime during the pretrial period
compared to comparable defendants released within 24 hours.
(3) According to the Arnold Foundation, ``Compared to
individuals released within 24 hours of arrest, low-risk
defendants held 2-3 days were 17 percent more likely to commit
another crime within two years. Detention periods of 4-7 days
yielded a 35 percent increase in re-offense rates. And
defendants held for 8-14 days were 51 percent more likely to
recidivate than defendants who were detained less than 24
hours.''.
(4) Jailing arrested individuals before trial is the
greatest expense generated by current pretrial justice
practice. Unconvicted detainees account for 95 percent of jail
population growth, nationally, since 2000. Taxpayers now spend
approximately $38,000,000 per day to jail individuals who are
awaiting trial. Annually, this adds up to $14,000,000,000 used
to detain individuals.
(5) Unnecessary detention may be counterproductive and
undermine an important purpose of money bail--specifically to
produce the defendant at trial. Studies show that those who are
detained pretrial for more than 24 hours and then released are
less likely to reappear as required than other similarly
situated defendants who are detained for less than 24 hours.
(6) In Bearden v. Georgia, 461 U.S. 660, 671 (1983), the
Supreme Court of the United States stated that the due process
and equal protection principles of the Fourteenth Amendment to
the Constitution of the United States prohibit ``punishing a
person for his poverty''. The Court prohibited the
incarceration of indigent probationers for non-willful failure
to pay a fine because to ``do otherwise would deprive the
probationer of his conditional freedom simply because, through
no fault of his own, he cannot pay the fine.''. State and local
justice systems that impose money bail that leads to pretrial
defendants being detained because they cannot afford a money
bail amount may result in ``punishing a person'' for his or her
poverty.
(7) Pretrial detention can lead to devastating effects,
including threatening the employment, housing stability, child
custody, and access to healthcare of an individual. Barker v.
Wingo, 407 U.S. 514, 532-33 (1972) (``The time spent in jail
awaiting trial has a detrimental impact on the individual. It
often means loss of a job; it disrupts family life; and it
enforces idleness. Most jails offer little or no recreational
or rehabilitative programs. The time spent in jail is simply
dead time. Moreover, if a defendant is locked up, he is
hindered in his ability to gather evidence, contact witnesses,
or otherwise prepare his defense. Imposing those consequences
on anyone who has not yet been convicted is serious. It is
especially unfortunate to impose them on those persons who are
ultimately found to be innocent.'').
(8) Nationwide, about 9 in 10 detained defendants had a
money bail amount set but were unable to meet the financial
conditions required to secure release.
(9) The inability to post money bail may result in innocent
individuals pleading guilty to low-level crimes so they can be
released.
(10) Money bail systems have resulted in disparate harms to
poor people and communities of color. Studies have shown that
African-American and Hispanic defendants are more likely to be
detained pretrial than White defendants and less likely to be
able to post money bail so they can be released. Moreover, race
and money bail amounts are significantly correlated.
Nationally, African-American men pay 35 percent higher money
bail amounts than White men, and Hispanic men pay 19 percent
higher money bail amounts than White men.
(11) Congress should encourage replacement of the practice
of money bail systems to provide for a more equal and effective
criminal justice system for the people of the United States.
SEC. 3. PRETRIAL INTEGRITY AND SAFETY.
Title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968
(42 U.S.C. 3711 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``PART MM--PRETRIAL INTEGRITY AND SAFETY
``SEC. 3031. DEFINITIONS.
``In this part--
``(1) the term `charge-risk profile' means a composite of
the charge (or charge category) and risk score (or risk
category of failing to appear in court or being rearrested) of
a defendant;
``(2) the term `eligible entity' means a public or private
entity, including--
``(A) a nonprofit entity (including a tribal
nonprofit);
``(B) a faith-based or community organization;
``(C) a State or tribal court system;
``(D) a unit of local government; and
``(E) an Indian tribe;
``(3) the term `evidence-based practices', with respect to
supervision of the conditions of pretrial release, means
intervention programs and supervision policies, procedures,
programs, and practices that scientific research demonstrates
are the least restrictive necessary to reduce the instance of a
failure by a defendant to appear in court or criminal activity
by a defendant during the pretrial period, when implemented
competently;
``(4) the term `least restrictive conditions'--
``(A) includes court date notifications by phone
call, letter or postcard, text message, in-person
reminder, or another noninvasive pretrial supervisory
condition; and
``(B) does not include a condition that imposes
additional financial obligations on the defendant,
including charging the defendant for implementation of
the conditions;
``(5) the term `money bail' means a secured monetary
obligation that is imposed by a court as a condition of the
release of a defendant before the trial or adjudication of the
criminal charges pending against the defendant;
``(6) the term `reason for detention' means whether a
defendant was held without bond, held on another charge, or
held for another reason;
``(7) the term `release condition' means whether a
defendant was released--
``(A) based on nonfinancial, personal recognizance;
``(B) with pretrial supervision;
``(C) with an unsecured financial obligation; or
``(D) with a secured financial obligation; and
``(8) the term `State or tribal court system' means the
court, court system, administrative offices of the courts, or
similarly situated agency of a State or Indian tribe.
``SEC. 3032. GRANTS AND CONDITIONS.
``(a) Grants Authorized.--
``(1) Replacement of money bail.--The Assistant Attorney
General may make grants to State and tribal court systems and
eligible entities for the replacement of the use of payment of
money bail as a condition of pretrial release with respect to
criminal cases.
``(2) National pretrial reporting program.--The Assistant
Attorney General may make grants to eligible entities to
implement a National Pretrial Reporting Program to collect data
on the processing of defendants by courts of States and units
of local government.
``(b) Terms and Conditions.--
``(1) Duration of grants.--A grant under subsection (a)
shall be for a period of 3 fiscal years.
``(2) Maximums.--
``(A) Replacement of money bail.--Under subsection
(a)(1), the Assistant Attorney General may make--
``(i) not more than 6 grants to a State or
tribal court system during each fiscal year;
and
``(ii) not more than $10,000,000 in grants
during each fiscal year, of which--
``(I) not more than $6,500,000
shall be grants to State or tribal
court systems; and
``(II) not more than $3,500,000
shall be grants to eligible entities to
provide technical assistance, training,
and performance evaluation.
``(B) National pretrial reporting program.--The
Assistant Attorney General may not make more than
$5,000,000 in grants under subsection (a)(2) during
each fiscal year.
``(c) Use of Funds for Replacement of Money Bail Grants.--
``(1) Activities.--Amounts received under a grant under
subsection (a)(1) shall be used for developing the long-term,
sustainable capacity to perform more effective pretrial
practices that include system analysis, training and technical
assistance, meeting facilitation, research and performance
evaluation, and information technology reprogramming, and shall
seek to incorporate and implement the elements described in
paragraph (2).
``(2) Elements.--The elements described in this paragraph
are--
``(A) replacing money bail systems with
individualized, pretrial assessments that--
``(i) measure the risk of flight and risk
of anticipated criminal conduct posed by a
defendant while on pretrial release; and
``(ii) shall use risk-based decision making
that includes objective, research-based, and
locally validated assessment tools that do not
result in unwarranted disparities on the basis
of any classification protected under Federal
non-discrimination laws or the non-
discrimination laws of the applicable State;
``(B) providing for--
``(i) a presumption of release in most
cases; and
``(ii) a preventative detention protocol
only for cases in which a judicial officer
determines, by clear and convincing evidence
and after a hearing during which the defendant
is represented by counsel, that the appearance
of the defendant in court and the safety of the
community cannot reasonably be assured through
the use of any combination of conditions;
``(C) if pretrial release requires imposing
conditions, ensuring it is based on the least
restrictive conditions that a judicial officer
determines would reasonably assure the appearance of
the defendant and the safety of others in the
community;
``(D) ensuring supervision of the conditions of
pretrial release is based on evidence-based practices;
``(E) ensuring a defendant is provided with counsel
at the earlier of--
``(i) as soon as is feasible after
custodial restraint; or
``(ii) the first appearance before a
committing magistrate, judge, or other judicial
officer;
``(F) ensuring an officer of the State, unit of
local government, or Indian tribe appears before a
committing magistrate, judge, or other judicial officer
at the pretrial hearing;
``(G) ensuring the constitutional right of a
defendant to a speedy trial is effectuated, including--
``(i) setting specific limits on the time
within which either the defendant shall be
brought to trial or the case shall be resolved
through a nontrial disposition;
``(ii) providing guidelines for computing
the time within which the trial must be
commenced or the case otherwise resolved; and
``(iii) establishing appropriate
consequences in the event that the right of the
defendant to a speedy trial is denied;
``(H) ensuring that the defendant, State, unit of
local government, or Indian tribe is entitled to an
immediate, expedited appeal of a pretrial detention
decision; and
``(I) instituting a system of data collection and
reporting to determine the effectiveness of the program
replacing the money bail system.
``(3) Benchmarks.--A State or tribal court systems or
eligible entity receiving a grant under subsection (a)(1) shall
seek to achieve the following:
``(A) Defendants return to court rates are not less
than 95 percent.
``(B) Not more than 10 percent of defendants are
rearrested pending trial.
``(C) Overall release rates of defendants pending
trial are not less than 85 percent.
``(D) 100 percent of defendants have an attorney at
the first appearance of the defendant before a
magistrate, judge, or other judicial officer.
``(E) The majority of defendants preventively
detained were detained after a hearing that occurred
not later than 3 days after the date of the arrest or
booking of the defendant, and 100 percent of such
hearings occurred not later than 7 days after the date
of the arrest or booking.
``(F) Validated pretrial assessments with risk-
based decision making that do not lead to
disproportionately higher pretrial detention rates for
individuals on the basis of race and ethnicity.
``(4) Alternative pretrial release mechanisms.--Nothing in
this part shall be construed to prohibit the consideration of
alternative pretrial release mechanisms that replace money bail
systems while furthering the principles described in this part.
``(d) Annual Report.--
``(1) In general.--Each entity receiving a grant under this
section shall submit to the Assistant Attorney General, for
each fiscal year during which the entity expends amounts
received under the grant, a report, at such time and in such
manner as the Assistant Attorney General may reasonably
require, that contains--
``(A) a summary of the activities carried out using
amounts made available under the grant;
``(B) an assessment of whether the activities are
meeting the need for the program identified in the
application for the grant;
``(C) for a grant under subsection (a)(1), data on
the money bail program of the State or Indian tribe;
and
``(D) such other information as the Assistant
Attorney General may require.
``(2) Data.--The data provided under paragraph (1)(C)
shall--
``(A) be broken down by the demographic variables
of age group, sex, race and ethnicity, disability, and
charge-risk profile of the defendant;
``(B) include the percentage of defendants detained
in jail or prison who are released from jail or prison
prior to case disposition, broken down by demographic
variables of age group, sex, race and ethnicity,
disability, charge-risk profile, and release condition;
``(C) provide the average time to release from jail
for defendants who are released pretrial, broken down
by demographic variables of age group, sex, race and
ethnicity, disability, charge-risk profile, and release
condition;
``(D) provide the percentage of defendants who are
detained for the entire duration of the pretrial phase
of their case, broken down by demographic variables of
age group, sex, race and ethnicity, disability, charge-
risk profile, and reason for detention;
``(E) provide the average duration of the period
defendants who are not released are in custody in a
prison or jail before the disposition of their case,
broken down by demographic variables of age group, sex,
race and ethnicity, disability, charge-risk profile,
and reason for detention;
``(F) provide the percentage of defendants released
from custody before trial who appeared at all court
appearances for which the court expected them to appear
during the pretrial phase of their case, broken down by
demographic variables of age group, sex, race and
ethnicity, disability, charge-risk profile, and release
condition;
``(G) provide the percentage of defendants released
from custody before trial who were not arrested for or
charged with a new crime during the pretrial phase of
their case, broken down by demographic variables of age
group, sex, race and ethnicity, disability, charge-risk
profile, and release condition;
``(H) provide data on the access of defendants to
counsel, including the number of counsel appointments
for indigent defendants and the outcomes of pretrial
release decisions based on whether counsel was
provided; and
``(I) include a summary of the steps the entity has
taken to ensure that any risk assessment tool--
``(i) is properly and regularly validated
based on reliable local data;
``(ii) includes objective, research-based
data; and
``(iii) does not result in unwarranted
disparities on the basis of any classification
protected under Federal non-discrimination laws
or the non-discrimination laws of the
applicable State.
``(e) Allocation of Funds.--
``(1) In general.--For fiscal year 2018, of the amounts
appropriated to the Office, the Assistant Attorney General
shall use $15,000,000 to carry out this part.
``(2) Limitations; equitable distribution.--
``(A) Limitations.--Of the amount made available to
carry out this section in any fiscal year--
``(i) not more than 2 percent may be used
by the Assistant Attorney General for salaries
and administrative expenses; and
``(ii) not more than 25 percent may be used
for technical assistance, training, and
evaluation.
``(B) Equitable distribution.--The Assistant
Attorney General shall ensure that grants awarded under
this section are equitably distributed among the
geographical regions and between urban and rural
populations, including Indian tribes, consistent with
the objective of reducing recidivism among criminal
offenders.
``(f) Reallocation of Appropriations.--A recipient of a grant under
subsection (a) shall return to the Assistant Attorney General any
amounts received under a grant under subsection (a) that are not
expended for a purpose described in this section.''.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, and Investigations.
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