Decrease in Accountability Hurts Community's Safety

• December 02, 2008
• by Collateral Staff

[caption id="attachment_226" align="alignleft" width="160" caption=""Criminals are walking the streets without the appropriate safeguards to protect our community's safety.""][/caption]

What would happen if the criminal-justice system - in an attempt to cut costs and reduce jail overcrowding - released child abusers, felony drug users, illegal immigrants, people charged with domestic violence and car thieves from jail? Even worse, what if you knew that these people weren't being closely monitored?

What if there was a better solution - one that still relieves jail overcrowding, but also has a significantly better track record when it comes to tracking defendants - was available, but being underutilized?

Unfortunately, that's exactly what's happening in Orange County. Criminals, often with lengthy criminal histories, are being released " without adequate monitoring - on to our streets as they await their day in court. From the initial arrest through the last appearance in court, an alleged criminal must be held responsible. And, that's where the government-funded - really, taxpayer-funded - pretrial-release program falls short.

Approximately two-thirds of those arrested are released through the pretrial-release program. Many walk the streets on their own recognizance - without any financial "handcuffs" or incentive to stay out of trouble and to show up for court.

Pretrial release - which is used today to keep jail-related costs down - is not working. As a bail bondsman for nearly 30 years, I can attest to the evolution of the criminal-justice system - and how the decrease in accountability has directly impacted our community's safety. No accountability means no responsibility. No lessons learned. No reason to change.

But there's an alternative: commercial-surety bail. The private bail industry has a remarkably successful track record of partnering with the criminal-justice system to monitor defendants awaiting their day in court. Plus, there's an added level of accountability. The courts hold bail agents responsible for the actions of their customers. For example, we're financially responsible if one of our customers fails to show up for court. We write the court a check. As such, we work extra hard to make sure our clients stay out of trouble and attend their court hearings - at no extra cost to taxpayers.

When I first got into this business, most of the defendants were released on bail - meaning alleged criminals were held responsible for paying for their own release. It wasn't as simple as "get out of jail free." Bail serves as an added incentive to show up in court and to stay out of trouble in the meantime.

However, with pretrial release, an alleged criminal might have to check in weekly by phone with little or no face-to-face contact. That's not enough.

During the next budgeting cycle in July, Orange County commissioners may be asked to consider bolstering pretrial release to further relieve jail overcrowding. We need to remember the consequences of a strong pretrial-release system, and how it affects the entire community.

The jail may be less crowded - easing the burden on the county's budget - but criminals are walking the streets without the appropriate safeguards to protect our community's safety.

We must do more.

The first step: Infuse the criminal-justice system with accountability that starts from the day of arrest.

Written by Michael Snapp, owner of Mike Snapp Bail Bonds. Snapp has been a bail agent since 1978. His column was originally published in the Orlando Sentinel.