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Memphis, Tennessee – Memphis’ new district attorney is pushing for bail reform to “level the playing field” even as progressive policies blame rising crime.
Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy told Fox News, “This will create a level playing field and no longer two justice systems.” Those who don’t have it suffer in prison.”
Mulroy took the oath of office on August 31, becoming the first Democrat to hold the office in decades. With policies such as prioritizing violent crimes, fixing a “broken bail system”, implementing restorative justice, and extending the juvenile court’s jurisdiction to his 25th year, he advocates a progressive agenda. ran an election campaign.
Except in cases of “very serious violent crimes” or “where there is specific and credible evidence that a particular accused is a danger or danger to the community … the presumption shifts to a system that favors pretrial release.” You have to ‘of flight,’ Mulroy said.
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Mulroy hopes to have individualized hearings where judges will set realistic bail based on the defendant’s ability to pay.
“We have a system in this country, and it applies here in our county. We have a lot of people locked up waiting for a day in court,” Mulroy told Fox News. have not been convicted of
“They wait months, years, and sometimes court cases simply because they can’t afford cash bail.
Mulroy said about a quarter of people detained in Shelby County are waiting 500 days before appearing in court. A “significant number” have been released without assurance, he said.
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But by then “they’ve lost their jobs, interrupted their education and careers, and disrupted their families,” Mulroy told Fox News. It’s from.”
“A defendant in a similar situation who has the money and is able to post bail is spending those months or years longer than he or she is living,” he added.
Mulroy also said, “It’s racially imbalanced. The longer you stay in the bail system, the more likely you are to be black.”
Critics argue that bail reforms give defendants a chance to reoffend after being released, leading to an increase in crime.
“Time and again, police arrest and arrest people for assault, assault, robbery, and gun possession are back on the streets within days, if not hours, of their arrest. ’” said New York City Mayor Eric Adams, for example. “And they go on to commit more crimes in the coming weeks, if not days.”
The kidnapping of ELIZA FLETCHER and MEMPHIS targets highlights the city’s violent crime.
Darrell Brooks Jr., who is accused of killing six people and injuring more than 60 at the Waukesha Christmas parade in 2021, was released on $1,000 bail five days before the attack. He already had a 50-page rap sheet dating back to 1999, which included a violent felony conviction, and had a valid warrant from Nevada.
“There are always potential costs and risks with any system change,” Mulroy told Fox News.
Studies of the impact of bail reform on crime have yielded mixed results.
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Crime in New York increased 20% in the first two and a half months after the state’s bail reform law took effect in 2019, according to one study. Manhattan Institute Report.
However Brennan Justice Center There was no clear link between increased crime and bail reform legislation. Crime increased across the country in 2020, the study said, and “relatively few of those released under the new law were rearrested for serious offenses.”
“If convicted, they’re going to spend time in jail because they’ve been convicted,” Mulroy said. is still presumed innocent.”