(WBBM NEWSRADIO) — Justice system experts say the law that abolished cash bail in Illinois is doing exactly what its sponsors said it would.
Cook County public defender Sharone Mitchell says some people, including some state's attorneys around Illinois, were predicting the worst if the Pretrial Fairness Act ending cash bail in the state were approved,
“The streets would run red with blood. Folks characterized the change as a deterioration of the criminal legal system. Well, we are now about eight months into the actual implementation, and I just want to congratulate everybody on surviving the purge,” Mitchell said.
At a symposium sponsored by the American Bar Association and other organizations, Insha Rahman with the Vera Institute for Justice made the point that now seems obvious to many.
“So the problem with cash bail is from perspective of the system is that it obscures the real decision about whether somebody should rightfully be out or be in pending trial.”
She says the numbers show judges are holding the most dangerous suspects without bail as the law intended.
Bail reform will be covered in the At Issue program this weekend, which will air on WBBM Newsradio 105.9 FM Sunday at 9:30 a.m. and 9:30 p.m.
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