(WBBM NEWSRADIO) — Advocates for the state’s switch to a no-cash-bail system made a vigorous defense of the court reform Thursday and say opponents are fear-mongering.
Cook County Public Defender Sharone Mitchell rejected the message in many political ads from candidates who predict the worst will happen on Jan. 1, when the new system takes effect.
Sarah Staudt, policy director for the Chicago Appleseed Center for Fair Courts, said those who insist violent criminals will automatically be freed are lying.
“The Pre-Trial Fairness Act has a mechanism to allow jail in certain circumstances, and that mechanism is focused on safety and it’s focused on making sure that people come back to court and do not flee the jurisdiction — and it’s not focused on money,” Staudt said.
The law is designed to allow most non-violent suspects to go free pending trial, she and other supporters of the measure say.
The League of Women Voters sponsored a forum to discuss the new pretrial system.
Critics of the cash-bail system say tends to harm poor people who cannot afford bond.
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